Walk A Mile
by Senashenta
Summary: The Inner Senshi are thrilled when Kakyuu-hime invites them to visit her & the Starlights on Kinmoku, but when they arrive they're in for the shock of their lives. The Starlights are men on Earth, and what are the Earth Senshi on Kinmoku?
1. Why Walk When You Can Sailor Teleport?

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Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon, minna! Surprise! ^.^;; 

...okay, I really don't know what to say about this fic. I have _no clue_ where the idea came from, and it's going to be _totally pointless_. Unlike most of my stories, this one will probably just be random insanity. Well, not really _random_... but definitely insanity. 

Anyhow, I'm still on my Starlights kick so that would be why I'm writing this. Yeah. I'm not doing the chapter titles in this like I am in "Umbroso Estrella", but I'm going to try and make the chapter titles in this amusing as well. *shrug* I get bored sometimes and this is what happens... 

Review, ne minna? ^_^   


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Walk A Mile

Step 1: Why Walk When You Can Sailor Teleport?  


"Really?" 

"Hai." 

"Seriously?" 

"Hai-" 

"For real?" 

"Hai, Minako, hai!" 

"Wai!" Minako squealed happily and fell back onto the floor of Rei's bedroom, flinging her arms out from her sides. "I'm so totally excited! I can't believe it, are we _really_ going to visit the Starlights? Can we even _do_ that?" 

"It's true that Kakyuu-hime invited us," Luna told them hesitantly, "so I suppose..." 

"Yosh!" The blonde leaped up, the motion almost too fast for the others to see. Holding her hands up to her mouth, she practically drooled as she thought of the Starlights... or, more correctly, the _Three_ Lights. The stars in her eyes were somewhat disturbing... "let's go! I wanna' see my Yaten-kun! Let's go now! Letsgoletsgoletsgoletsgoletsgolets-" 

"Hang on a minute Minako-chan," Makoto interrupted her friend's stream of 'let's go' and looked at the two Moon Cats; "ne, Luna? If we go to Kinmoku, who's going to protect the Earth while we're gone?" 

"We will, as well as Mamoru-san." Michiru's musical voice said from the doorway, where she and Haruka were standing. She glanced toward Setsuna and Hotaru, who were seated on the edge of Rei's bed along with Ami. "The five of us really have no reason to want to go to Kinmoku, we didn't get to be friends with the Starlights as you did." 

"Plus," Hotaru spoke up, "Haruka-papa _refuses_ to go-" 

"Hotaru-chan..." Setsuna said warningly, with a glance at Haruka. 

The sandy-blonde was staring straight ahead with an unreadable expression on her face. Pressing her lips into a thin line, her eyes went to the odango-haired girl who was sitting around the low table. "I don't think it's a good idea for you to go." 

Usagi winced visibly. Haruka had... issues… with Sailor Star Fighter that had yet to be worked out, and she was worried about the Star Senshi's intentions toward their Moon Princess. "Haruka-san, you know I-" 

"Haruka has no love for them," Michiru sighed, reaching up to lay a restraining hand on Haruka's arm. "But," she added, with a meaningful look at her partner, "that does _not_ mean you have the right to keep Usagi-chan and the others from visiting their friends. If they wish to go to Kinmoku, they can." 

Haruka said nothing. 

"Oi, Haruka-papa!" Hotaru said brightly, trying to turn the tense mood that had developed into a lighter one; "we can protect Earth, ne? And if it makes you feel any better about not having the Ginzuishou to defend it, Setsuna-mama can go to the thirtieth century and get Chibiusa-chan and the Sailor Quartet to come back and help us! Right Setsuna-mama?" 

The Keeper of Time smiled down at the girl and ruffled her hair affectionately, "that's an excellent idea, Hotaru-chan." 

"Ah, but Hotaru-chan is just looking for an excuse to see Chibiusa, aren't you Hime-chan?" Michiru said with a knowing laugh, making Hotaru giggle. "Well Haruka? Would that do for you?" 

Haruka sighed heavily, her eyes sweeping around the room. The other Outer Senshi seemed calm and confident with what was being decided. And the Inner Senshi... well, Minako and Rei were practically ready to clobber her if she said 'no'. But they had always been the most fanatical about the Lights. Makoto was a little more restrained, but only because she had always been more level-headed than her blonde and black haired counterparts. Ami was silent, but it was obvious to Haruka's experienced eye that the blue-haired genius really _did_ want to go to Kinmoku. Ah, but she seemed to have a soft spot for the tallest of the Starlights. Star Maker, was it? And Usagi... the girl was as excited as Minako about the prospect of visiting Kakyuu-hime and her senshi, despite the dangers posed by Seiya. 

"Haruka-san," Makoto addressed her, "we always watch over Usagi-chan, ne? No matter what." She winked at the older senshi, "even if we're not on Earth!" 

"Onegai, Haruka-san!" Minako begged, making puppy-eyes at her, "onegaiiiiii?" 

"Oi..." Haruka reached up to rub the bridge of her nose. "I suppose..." 

"Wai, Haruka-san!" Minako dove at her happily, "arigato! Thank you so much!" 

"Minako-!" Haruka, unused to Minako's tendency to tackle people when she was excited, pried the blonde off of herself. "I said alright, but that doesn't mean I approve. But... if Setsuna calls Chibiusa-chan and the Quartet from the future-" she glanced at Hotaru, who was grinning ear-to-ear, "-to _work_, and help us here, then I can't really complain, can I? Luna?" 

"Hm?" Luna's ears twitched, "hai?" 

"Can I ask you to send reports every day?" 

The cat nodded, "we'll keep you posted on what's happening." 

"Haruka-san!" Rei laughed, "you sound like we're going into battle!" 

"It's just a visit with friends," Usagi agreed. 

Haruka looked at her sharply, "there are dangers still." 

Usagi sighed, her eyes turning downward. Behind her, Ami laid a hand on her shoulder gently. "Hai, Haruka-san," the blonde odango agreed, "but they're still my friends and I really _do_ want to do and see them all." 

At the sad look on her Princess' face, Haruka softened. "I know, Usagi-chan." Usagi looked up at her and she managed a lopsided grin; "which is why I'm willing to let you go. You all want to see them again, and we can handle Earth without the Ginzuishou's power. So..." she shrugged, "go." 

Usagi smiled brightly, "domo arigato, Haruka-san." 

"Yeah..." 

"Ne, Luna?" Ami asked suddenly, turning to the two Moon Cats, "are you and Artemis coming along with us?" 

"I don't-" Artemis began. 

But Luna had taken on a far-away look, "hai!" She responded, stars in her eyes that echoed the ones in Minako's. "I think I will!" Artemis grumbled under his breath, and the senshi all chuckled; Luna had a tiny thing for the cat-loving, silver-haired Yaten... 

"Well?" Minako demanded. 

"Ano..." Ami blinked, "well what, Minako-chan?" 

"When are we leaving?" 

"As soon as we can get packed." Luna responded, "Ami-chan, can I borrow your computer? I'll let Kakyuu-hime know that we're on our way. She wanted to know so she can greet us when we arrive." 

"Hai." Digging in her pocket, Ami pulled out her mini computer and handed it to Rei, who opened it and set it on the table for Luna to use. The cat set about contacting Kinmoku immediately, Artemis watching her work with a glower on his feline face. 

"Are you coming, too, Artemis?" Rei asked. 

....of course!" He snapped, "I go where Minako goes." 

"Sure, sure," Rei chuckled, "a likely story." 

"Ah," Michiru sighed, catching their attention. "As we have no interest in the rest of your conversation, I think Haruka and I will be going." Linking her arm through the tall blonde's, she smiled warmly; "travel safely, minna-chan, and I hope you have fun on your trip." 

"Oi, tell me all about Kinmoku when you get back!" Hotaru giggled as she and Setsuna stood to leave with Michiru and Haruka. "I don't know the Starlights very well, but I know they're good people and I'd like to see their planet." She sighed, "but I'm kind of young to go halfway across the galaxy, ne? Plus, if I stay here I get to see Chibiusa-chan! Hey, maybe she can go, too, and-" 

"Nice try, Hime-chan." Setsuna laughed softly, "but you and Chibiusa are staying on Earth with us." 

The girl nodded, "I thought as much. Oh well! I still get to see Chibiusa-chan!" 

"Come on Hotaru," Michiru waved her hand lightly, beckoning for her to follow; "we're going home." 

"Hai!" Hotaru responded, running after the aqua-haired beauty. Setsuna followed at a more sedate pace, and soon the three were gone. Haruka, however, paused once they were gone and turned to look back at Usagi. 

"I told you before, Koneko-chan, and my advice remains the same even now" she murmured with a meaningful look before turning, "it's far too late once you've been caught by a wolf. Watch yourself, little Princess, when he's near." 

Usagi flushed at her words, but nodded. 

"Ja ne!" Haruka called, waving lightly. And then she vanished after the other Outers. 

"Ne-" Luna said after they were gone. She glanced up from Ami's computer; "Kakyuu-hime says she and the Starlights are looking forward to our visit. They're expecting us some time later today, so as soon as you all go and-" 

"Yosh!" Minako shouted, "alright!" Snatching Artemis from the table, she flung the cat over her shoulder and bolted for the door. 

"M-Minako!" Artemis gasped in shock, "what are you doing?" 

"You said you go with me, right?" The blonde's voice could be heard as she raced down the steps and away from the temple, "well I'm going home to pack, and you're coming with me! Oi, minna! I'll meet you back here in half an hour!" 

"Hai!" Came the chorused reply. 

Makoto, Ami and Usagi were just getting ready to leave as well, and Rei was already whipping out the things that she wanted to take with her. She didn't even care that the others were still there, and she didn't shout at Usagi when the blonde attempted to smuggle a handful of comic books out the door under her arm. 

"Hey," Makoto said suddenly, just as she was leaving with Ami and Usagi in tow; "just how are we getting to Kinmoku, anyway?" 

"Mako-chan!" Rei called, winking, "that's a cinch! Why walk when you can Sailor Teleport?"   


~*~*~*~*~*~  


Me: Yeah, another Starlights fic. Ah, but this one isn't dark like "Umbroso Estrella" is. Actually, it's going to be kind of funny... well, let me know what you think... though not much happened in this chapter. Review chapter 2 and you should have something to review. ^_^;;


	2. Ahh! A Boy In Girl's Clothing!

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. So there. 

Alrighty, this chapter is probably going to be pointless, but....wait 'til the end! Hee, hee....oh, and there are a handful of made-up characters in this. They're not HUGE characters, but I needed more than just the Inners & Starlights. ^_^ Plus, there's a few little things in this that I'm leaving semi-explained and that are probably not accurate. I don't care. I'm just writing this as fluff to get all the craziness of "Umbroso Estrella" and some of my other stories out of my head. I can't write horribly serious stuff all the time, ne? I'll go back to the other stories and write more in them after I'm done this chapter....   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~Ahh! A Boy In Girl's Clothing!~

  
  


"Ta-da!" 

Everyone looked up when Minako presented herself at the sliding-door to Rei's room, backpack in hand and Artemis hanging over her shoulder. The blonde winked brightly and stepped inside, dropping her bag at her feet and looking around- Rei was just finishing writing a long and intricate set of instructions to the Temple help on things-to-do while she was gone, Makoto and Ami were sitting at the low table, engrossed in a game of chess, and Usagi- 

-Usagi wasn't there yet. 

Sighing, Minako grinned, "Usagi-chan's late even for this?" 

"Oi, oi," Luna nodded tolerantly. 

"You expected something else?" Rei snapped, looking up from her note. She scribbled her name at the bottom and folded it before stuffing it into an envelope and addressing it to her Grandfather. "Odango-brain would be late for her own funeral." A snort and she crumped one of the extra pieces of paper in agitation, dropping the pen onto the table. "....but that's Usagi for you, I guess." 

"Hai!" Makoto agreed. 

Ami shook her head; "she's hopeless." 

"Ne, minna?" Usagi's overly-sweet voice sounded from the door, "I heard that." 

"Usagi!" 

"Usagi-chan!" 

"Odango Atama!" Rei growled, chucking the paper ball at her, "you're LATE!" 

The paper bounced off of the blonde girl's forehead and she winced; "itai, Rei! That hurt!" 

"It was PAPER for crying out loud-" 

"It still HURT!" 

"Don't be such a-" 

"Ahem!" Luna cleared her throat, even as the others giggled nervously. Eyeing her mistress, she shook her head. "Despite Usagi-chan's chronic tardiness, we're all here so if everyone has what they want to bring, I guess let's go." 

"Yosh!" Minako shouted, beginning to star-eye again. She would be difficult to handle once they reached Kinmoku, that much was obvious already; but at least Yaten had some warning this time before the blue-eyed hurricane descended on him. "Let's go! Sailor Teleport away and all that!" Whipping out her henshin wand she held it up dramatically; "Venus Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

The flash of light that signified her transformation died down instantly and the energetic Sailor Venus struck her V-For-Victory pose. When they all stared at her without transforming themselves, her lips curved into a half-snarl and her hands flew to her hips. The motion threw Artemis, who up until then had managed to keep a tenuous hold on her shoulder, onto the floor with a thump. "Hurry up!" She told them; "Yaten-kun isn't the kind to wait all day! If we're late he'll just leave and then I'll have to hunt him down and find him! Oh but...." she trailed off, her eyes sparkling mischievously and her voice lowering to a whisper, "....then we'd be alone...." 

"Minako-chan!" Artemis groaned from the carpet. 

The blonde continued rambling under her breath, her hands clutched to her chest and her eyes filled with what could almost be seen as hearts. The others all watched her with amusement. Sometimes, no matter how tactless Yaten had been and would certainly be in the future, they just had to feel sorry for him.... 

Makoto sighed with a giggle, "she does have a point- we shouldn't keep Kakyuu-hime waiting any longer than we have to." 

"It wouldn't be polite." Ami agreed. 

Rei eyed Minako, "are we sure we want to take her?" 

A nod from Makoto, "Yaten-kun would probably appreciate it if we left her behind-" 

"-oi!" Venus' string of babbling cut short at that and she glared daggers first at Rei and then at Makoto. "Transform already!" 

A general sigh of acceptance. 

"Mercury Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

"Mars Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

"Jupiter Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

"Moon Eternal! Make-Up!" 

The transformations, as with Minako's, looked to normal eyes like bright flashes of light. To the senshi themselves, however, the process seemed to take longer; it was more a ceremony than anything else. The time to transform was relative, though. The senshi noticed because it was something important to them, while an onlooker would only care about the result.... 

"Wai!" Venus grinned and hefted her bag over her shoulder. Plucking Artemis from the floor where she had dropped him before, she slung him across the opposite shoulder and turned back to her friends. "Let's go!" 

Jupiter chuckled at the blonde senshi's enthusiasm. As Minako's best friend, she was the one who had to deal with her star-struck outbursts on the most regular basis, and she continued to find it terribly amusing. "Hai," she nodded and picked up her own bag. "Where are we Teleporting to?" 

"The main courtyard of Kakyuu-hime's Palace," Luna responded as she climbed up to sit on Sailor Moon's shoulder. "Kakyuu-hime plans on being there with Fighter, Maker and Healer when we arrive." A pause, then; "she also knows how long-distance Teleports can drain you, so she has already prepared rooms if you need them when we land." 

"Kakkoii!" Venus squealed. She was practically FORCING them into a circle and placing everyone's hands into everyone-else's-hands. "Come on, come on!" 

"Ne, Venus, be a little MORE excited, will you?" Mars shook her head. 

"Hey!" 

Mercury laughed, "well you ARE overdoing it just a little," she smiled, "but I have to admit that I'm excited about visiting them, too...." 

"See?" Venus demanded, "it's not just me!" 

Sailor Moon, who until then had been remarkably quiet and thoughtful, sighed. "Let's do this." 

Luna nodded, agreeing with her mistress. Inside, however, she was worried about the girl. Usagi had been very out of character since the Moon Cats announcement that they had been invited to Kinmoku; Luna suspected that the odango-haired princess was thinking about Seiya. Privately, she agreed with Haruka that- even though Seiya had accepted Usagi's love for Mamoru- they had to be careful. That was the reason that Luna, as well as the senshi of Uranus, had been reluctant to let them leave Earth.... 

But, she thought, red eyes watching Sailor Moon thoughtfully, she HAS grown up a lot....and Michiru was right that she does have every right the others do to visit her friends....I'll just keep an eye on her while we're there and everything will be fine. 

Or so she hoped. 

Shaking her black-furred head, she waited as the Inner Senshi clasped hands and then called out; "Sailors! Teleport!" 

At her shout, the senshi that she had brought together and trained (with a little help from Artemis, she would admit, though not as much as he liked to try to tell her) closed their eyes and concentrated. It had been a long time since they had attempted the Sailor Teleport technique, as there had been no need for it; after a few seconds, much less time than it would have taken them a year ago, their auras began to glow brightly around them. 

Red for Sailor Mars of Fire. 

Yellow for Sailor Venus of Love. 

Green for Sailor Jupiter of Thunder. 

Blue for Sailor Mercury of Ice. 

And Pink for Sailor Moon, whose power came not from an element, but from her own heart and Star Seed, the Ginzuishou which was carried in her brooch and next to her heart at all times, and her belief in the dreams with which she carried herself through life. 

The air around them grew brighter as the gravity became next to nil. 

And a split second later they vanished from the Temple to find themselves standing in the middle of a huge flower garden. 

"Whew!" 

They fell back, releasing each other's hands, to catch their breath. A Teleport that far- assuming they were where they were supposed to be- took a lot of energy, and it would take a few hours to regain it. But as long as they had no fighting to do, there was nothing to worry about. 

The courtyard that they had landed in seemed to be the correct one; at least, it was large enough that they ASSUMED it was the right one. Everywhere they looked there were brightly blooming flowers, cobblestone paths ran throughout the garde, and in the center of the yard itself sat a huge stone fountain. 

"Wow!" Jupiter exclaimed as her eyes took in the rows and rows of flowerbeds. It was the gardener in her speaking now, and everyone knew it. "I've never seen so many flowers! There are roses here of every color!" 

"All but one, actually." A familiar voice told them with an almost-laugh, "for some reason, white roses don't grow very well here on Kinmoku." 

They all looked up expectantly, already smiling, to face the speaker. 

Standing near a set of wide silver doors, which probably lead back into the palace, were those they had come to see; Seiya, Taiki and Yaten in their senshi forms of Sailor Star Fighter, Sailor Star Maker and Sailor Star Healer, and beside them was the beautiful Princess Kakyuu. Kakyuu-hime was smiling serenely, obviously quite pleased that they had made it safely; Star Maker's smile almost perfectly echoed hers- it was Maker who had spoken before. Star Fighter was grinning widely, but that was no surprise. It was also no surprise to see the half-smirk that Star Healer passed for a smile; she was glad to see them as well, though she never would have said so. 

"Oi, Odango!" Fighter called, "long time no see!" 

Sailor Moon stuck her tongue out, but instead of telling her 'my name's not Odango' as everyone expected, she grinned back at the Star Senshi. "Only a year and a half, but who's counting?" 

Fighter chuckled and looked around for something. 

"Ne, Fighter?" Sailor Moon blinked. "What are you looking for?" 

"Is it possible?" Fighter asked with a mischievous smile, "did Haruka-tomboy actually let you come here without her?" 

Sailor Moon opened her mouth to say something and then thought the better of it. Instead she glared halfheartedly at Star Fighter before turning her attention to the others. "We know that Fighter's the same as ever, but what about you guys?" 

"We're better now that we don't get mobbed wherever we go." Healer told them. "All those stupid Three Lights fans aren't here to-" 

"YATEEEEN!" 

"I spoke too soon," she muttered under her breath, glaring at the blonde senshi-of-Love who had launched herself from several feet away and was now latched onto her arm. It apparently didn't matter to Venus whether it was Yaten or Star Healer; either way she was going to be wrapped around an arm for quite a while. "Oi, Aino-san!" She snapped angrily, "get off of me this minute!" 

And Venus effectively ignored her. 

Maker watched with half-amusement and half-pity as Healer attempted to pry the blonde off of herself. She wasn't making much headway. "We're doing well," Maker told them, "KINMOKU is doing well." 

"And we're happy to welcome you to our home," Kakyuu said warmly, "please, come inside! I have rooms already prepared, as I'm sure Luna has told you, and there are people we wish you to meet." 

There was no hesitation as the Earth Senshi fell into pace beside the Starlights and their Princess. Things were as they should be; a happy reunion after not seeing good friends for so long, and the conversation was bright as everyone tried to catch up on events that they had missed. 

"You know," Sailor Moon told Star Fighter, who was walking beside her. "Everyone thinks you died." 

"What?" 

"Oh yes," Mercury nodded from ahead, where she was walking with Mars and Star Maker; "after Three Lights disbanded, none of you were seen anywhere. Then there was a plane crash a month or so later." She smiled softly, "so naturally rumors started to circulate that you had been on the plane when it went down." 

"Everyone at school was mourning." Jupiter added. 

"Hai." Mars agreed, "it was hard to go and see everyone practically in tears and not tell them they were being stupid." 

Star Healer snorted, "I would have told them they were- shimatta! Aino-san!" She again attempted to pry Venus off. Venus simply giggled something incoherent and continued to clutch at her arm. "Get off of me, damn it!" 

"We all KNOW what you would have said, Healer." Maker raised an eyebrow, "which means it's good thing you weren't there." 

"If Yaten was there they wouldn't have been sad," Jupiter pointed out, "because they would have known you weren't dead." 

"Touche." 

Kakyuu was quiet, simply enjoying the banter between them. She was glad to see her Starlights to happy. They had missed the Earth Senshi a lot after returning to Kinmoku, which was one of the reasons she had invited them to visit; it was good that they were happy to see their friends. 

"Ne, Fighter, who are we supposed to meet?" Sailor Moon asked. 

"Hm?" The tall black-haired senshi grinned, "we're training more Star Senshi right now, Odango, and Kakyuu-hime wants them to meet you." 

"You agree with her?" 

"Oh course she does!" Healer piped up, "Fighter thinks EVERYONE should meet you-" 

"Healer!" 

"Well, you-" 

"Shut up!" 

Healer smirked but wisely kept her mouth shut as they continued through the Palace. 

In many ways, the Inner Senshi were reminded of the Moon Kingdom by what they saw; the Palace in itself was much the same, but the style of dress was also similar, as was the music. It struck each of them at least once that Michiru would have fit in beautifully with the elegant clothing and classical songs. 

"Ah!" Kakyuu smiled happily when they reached a set of large doors, soft music floated from beyond them. Maker and Fighter pushed them open for her and once they were all through them, the Star Senshi also shut the heavy silver doors as well. 

Healer would have helped had her arm not been taken over by the Goddess of Love. 

"Now here," the Princess said, gesturing around the room, "is the Ballroom!" Even as they were taking in the grandeur of the great hall, though, she was sweeping them toward a grand piano that sat at the far end. "Come, come-" 

At or near the piano sat three figures. From across the room they were impossible to identify, but as their group drew nearer their clothing could be recognized as Kinmoku senshi fuku; two of them glanced up curiously at their approach. The third, who was playing a soft song on the piano, had her eyes closed and seemed oblivious to the world. 

"Oh! Kakyuu-hime!" One of them exclaimed with a smile, "we didn't expect you back so soon-" 

The one who was playing sighed and the song stopped. 

"Oh no, please don't stop on our account!" Mercury told her, "that was lovely!" 

She looked up at the blue-haired senshi, "arigato." 

"Ne, Kakyuu-hime, are these the senshi you wanted us to meet?" The third asked brightly from her seat on the top of the piano. She surveyed the group; her eyes landed on Fighter and then drifted to Sailor Moon, who was standing close by, "I'm going to go out on a limb and say the one that Fighter's standing over protectively is Sailor Moon." 

Healer laughed at that, only to receive a harsh glare from Fighter. 

"Hai, these are the senshi from Earth." Kakyuu agreed. 

"Well," the Star Senshi who had already identified Sailor Moon hopped from the top of the piano and paced over gracefully. Her blue-green hair was pulled back into the traditional Star Senshi ponytail and her matching eyes sparkled. Holding her hand out to the odango-haired-senshi, she said; "I'm Sailor Star Hunter." A wink, "of course that's not my REAL name." 

Sailor Moon took her hand, "I'm Sailor Moon-" a giggle and she added; "Usagi." 

"Hikaru." Star Hunter told her, "nice to finally meet you after all of Fighter's babbling-" 

"Hunter!" Fighter snapped. 

"Okay, okay." Hunter waved her off, "I'm just joking." She looked at Sailor Moon again and then around at the others; "what about your friends?" 

"Oh!" Sailor Moon smiled and patted Luna's head; "this is my guardian cat, Luna. The white cat is Artemis- he's Venus' guardian. Um, Venus- Minako- is the one that's trying to become a part of Healer's arm." A nervous giggle as everyone turned to regard the blonde senshi, whom Healer was STILL trying to get away from. "Anyway," Sailor Moon continued, "Mars is the one with black hair who looks mean-" 

"Sailor Moon!" 

She cringed at the tone in Mars' voice and chose not to look at the raven-haired girl; "her real name is Rei. Jupiter is the one with brown hair over there, her name's Makoto, and Mercury is the one with blue hair who's standing with Maker. That's Ami-chan." 

"Nice to meet you all, too." Hunter told them. Looking over her shoulder, she regarded her comrades. "These are my friends, the people I'm training with. Come on, people, introduce yourselves already!" 

"Alright, alright," the one who had been playing the piano sighed, shaking her head. She looked at them with pale hunter green eyes from under light brown bangs. "I'm Amai, also known as Sailor Star Dreamer." She smiled softly, "pleased to meet you." 

"And I'm Sailor Star Dancer." The final senshi- who had been the first to greet Kakyuu- announced. Standing from her seat on the piano bench next to Dreamer, she brushed a stray strand of violet hair out of her deep purple eyes, "but my real name is Josei." 

"There now!" Kakyuu clasped her hands together in satisfaction, "now we all know each other!" 

"Oi," Hunter said, "why don't we all de-transform?" 

"Hai!" Kakyuu agreed, "you can settle in and then get to know each other!" 

"Good idea!" Venus nodded, still clutching Healer's arm tightly, "I wanna' spend some time with Yaten!" 

"Aino-san...." Healer grated in warning. 

She was, again, completely ignored. 

Sailor Moon shrugged and began to de-transform, along with the other Earth Senshi. Their transformation ribbons started to reverse, effectively leaving them in what they had been wearing when they transformed in the first place. 

"Ne, Odango!" Fighter called, "there's something we should warn you about before-" 

But she was too late. 

"Ahh!" Usagi stretched, "it's good to be back to normal." 

"Normal...." Healer snickered, catching their attention. The silver-haired Star Senshi was beginning to laugh.... 

"What?" Rei demanded. 

"Iieeeee!" 

A shriek from Minako made them all spin to look at their friend with alarm. Healer, meanwhile, had begun to roar with laughter; the other Star Senshi were giggling as well, including Maker. What-? 

"Minna!" Minako cried, "look at me! Look at us!" 

And everyone echoed their friend's sentiments as they followed crystal blue eyes that looked down at herself....or rather, HIMSELF, in absolute shock....   
  


____________   
  


Me: See? There really is something happening besides a lot of talking. ^.^;; Totally pointless.... 


	3. Snips And Snails And Kitty Cat Tails

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon! (Never did, never have, never will!) 

....first, I have to say THANK YOU SO MUCH to Cassandra Sisenta (or Krey-Zey) for letting me borrow two characters that are probably going to be introduced in this chapter; Kira, aka Sailor Star Striker and Aoi, aka Sailor Star Keeper. Cassandra-san created them for her Starlights story "Stars Align To Destiny", and when I read it I fell onto the fangirl bandwagon for the two new Lights. (Yay for Kira-sama and Aoi-sama!) Anyway, I'm making this a lot more of a ramble than I need to. In any case, I asked if I could borrow Striker and Keeper for this fic and she said yes; so I'm using them but I don't own them! Arigato Cassandra-san! 

Anyway, Hikaru (Star Hunter), Josei (Star Dancer) and Amai (Star Dreamer) are just people I made up for the fun of adding them. If anyone likes them enough to want to use them go ahead and ask so that I know where they're going and I don't mind. 

....does anyone see why I said this was going to be pointless? Yeah, I'm just messing around while I work through some of my other stories in my head. I'm having fun, though, because it's a bunch of fluff so far. ^.^;; I hope at least someone else finds it amusing.   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~Snips And Snails And Kitty-Cat Tails~

  
  


Rei sat stiffly, arms crossed, glaring straight ahead. Ami was deep in thought, eyes closed tightly and a slight frown evident in the delicate features. Makoto silently watched Luna and Artemis converse with Haruka over the Mercury computer. Usagi listened to Haruka's reaction to their situation, wincing when the tall blonde's voice rose a notch or two. Minako was still in shock and staring blankly down at the table, for once not latched onto Yaten's arm- or any other part of her body for that matter. 

"-and that's the story." Luna concluded tiredly. 

Over the computer, Haruka took several seconds to comprehend the situation. In the background, muffled laughter could be heard- it seemed to be coming from not only Hotaru, who was still young enough to find the situation absolutely hilarious, but from Setsuna and Michiru as well. Haruka probably would have been laughing, had they been anywhere other than Kinmoku. As it was she was simply staring straight ahead, blinking. 

The laughter continued from the background, getting louder as the three other Outer Senshi laughed uproariously. A slight twitch in Haruka's eyebrow signified that she was about to either join their laughing or completely snap. 

She chose to do the later. "It's not that funny!" 

"G-gomen nasai, Haruka-papa-" Hotaru's voice responded, "but....I'm just...." she trailed off again and after a moment her giggling began anew. "G-gomen...." 

Haruka sighed angrily and glanced to the side at her adopted daughter. Hotaru and the others couldn't be seen, but their laughter subsided considerably at the scathing look Haruka gave them. Once it was quieter, the senshi of Uranus turned back to Luna, "how did this happen?" 

Luna shook her head, "Kakyuu-hime tells us that they were half-expecting it-" 

"We were guys on your planet!" Yaten laughed, raising her voice so that Haruka could hear; "I think it's only fair that you're guys on our planet!" 

The twitch in Haruka's eyebrow returned. "Thank you." She snapped sarcastically. 

The silver-haired youth continued to laugh loudly, completely enjoying the novelty of the situation. Her laughter was echoed by Seiya, who was watching emotions that ran from confusion to anger to irony and anything in between play across Usagi's face. Taiki was more restrained in her laughter, but even she was chuckling at the scene before her. The other three- Hikaru, Amai and Josei- were giggling, but to them it was simply amusing; the three original Starlights found it absolutely hilarious, mostly because of how well they knew the Earth Senshi. 

Princess Kakyuu was shaking her head at all of them, having already attempted an embarrassed apology. 

"Come back to Earth." Haruka said, her voice coming over the computer, "now." 

"Shimatta! That's just it!" Rei exploded, uncrossing her- no, his- arms and throwing his hands into the air. "We can't yet! We haven't regained all our energy from Teleporting here in the first place!" 

"Oh come now," Taiki chided, "is it really all that bad?" 

"Yeah!" Seiya added brightly, "you came to visit, so stay for a while. Hell, we dealt with being guys on Earth and that was for MONTHS! You can handle a week, can't you?" She looked at Usagi, "ne, Odango? You gonna' head home without even staying for dinner first?" 

Usagi stuck out his tongue, showing that even though there were outside differences, inside it was still just Tsukino Usagi. "Baka." At Seiya's feigned-hurt look, he stuck his nose in the air and crossed his legs. 

Or attempted to cross his legs; the problem being in the fact that before transforming, Usagi had been wearing a short skirt and a blouse. Now, being a guy instead of a girl, the clothing was NOT comfortable and moving without ripping it was tricky. Minako was having a similar problem with the blue skirt-overalls he was wearing. Ami was wearing a skirt as well, but it was knee-length and loose so the problem was a minimal one. Makoto had been wearing shorts and a sports jersey so there was no trouble there, and Rei had on loose jeans and a sweater; both were tighter now, but they still fit relatively well. 

Giving up at crossing his legs, Usagi sighed and covered his face with a hand. "Haruka-san, I think we're going to stay for a little while." 

"What?!" Haruka and Rei demanded at the same time. 

"Usagi's right," Ami told them softly, "it wouldn't be polite to run off now, and besides," his eyes opened and he looked around, "all of us are too tired to transform and Teleport back to Earth. We have to have at least one good meal and some sleep first." 

"You know, Taiki-san is right though." Makoto said, trying to shrug off the obvious discomfort between the Earth Senshi, "it's not all THAT bad, so we should be fine. Besides, WE have people to help us get used to the idea of being guys." 

"And we didn't." Seiya nodded, "see? You'll be fine!" 

"You can go home in a day or two when you're rested again." Hikaru spoke up, the first of the three new Starlights to join in the somewhat confusing conversation. "And until then you can look around the Palace, ne?" 

"I think having them around will be entertaining." Yaten announced, standing. 

"Ah, but-" Seiya winked, "we can't have you walking around in that-" she nodded toward Usagi's outfit, making him blush. "So we're going to have to outfit you, aren't we?" 

"That's probably the best idea." Artemis nodded, stifling a snicker when he surveyed Minako's current condition. The skirt-overalls weren't working well with his new physique. "And the three of you would know, ne?" 

"Exactly!" Tipping her head at the Moon Cat, Seiya had to grin, "come on Odango, we'll see if we can't find you all something fitting to wear." 

"It shouldn't be a problem," Kakyuu reminded her senshi; "the Palace tailors can always make them something." 

"We may have to do that, too." Taiki said thoughtfully, "but for now we just have to get them respectably clothed." 

"You're actually going to stay?" Haruka asked incredulously. 

Stifled giggles from out of sight accompanied her question, and then hushed whispers told of Michiru's warning to be quieter. Haruka's eyes flicked to the side and her lips quirked suspiciously. Even she was finding humor in the situation, though she refused to say as much. It was probably all she could do not to break down with her fellow Outer Senshi. 

Luna shrugged, "I suppose we are." 

"Oi, oi," Haruka groaned and rubbed a temple with her forefinger. "Of all the things to happen...." 

"Hey," Seiya chuckled, leaning over to peer into the computer screen; "it could be worse, you know." 

The senshi is Uranus stiffened upon seeing Seiya, "how?" 

"You and Michiru could be here too." 

"Seiya!" 

At the look on Haruka's face, Yaten burst into uncontrollable gales of laughter. Seiya looked quite pleased with herself and stepped out of the way of Haruka's scathing glare. Taiki shook her head tolerantly and cast a glance at the new Star Senshi, who were watching events unfold with great curiosity; Hikaru found Seiya's comment almost as funny as Yaten did, though she didn't know Haruka or Michiru; Josei was giggling softly, and Amai was simply waiting for when she would have to pound on Hikaru's back to make her stop choking. That was inevitable, given the way the aqua-haired senshi was laughing. 

On the screen, Haruka was not looking amused. 

"Ne, Haruka-san," Usagi sighed finally, moving into sight of the blonde, "we'll be fine." 

"....Usagi-chan...." Haruka's face was unreadably, completely void of emotion as she surveyed her Princess; hair in the traditional (but completely idiotic looking at this point) odangos, pink shirt and red blouse, and very obviously MALE, though effeminate, body. Finally, the corners of her mouth turned up and she chuckled, "this is some situation you've gotten into Koneko-chan!" 

"Oi, Haruka-san! I wanna' see, too!" Another voice piped up, and a pink-haired head popped into view behind the tall senshi; the owner stared for a moment, and then burst into hysterical giggles. "Ne, Usagi-chan! You look so funny!" 

"Ch-Chibiusa!" Usagi gasped, stepping back, "ano....Haruka-san! You never told me that Chibiusa was there...." 

"You never asked, Usagi-chan," Michiru's voice responded as the senshi of Neptune stepped up to rest her hands on Haruka's shoulders. She smiled, stifling a very un-Michiru-like grin; "but Setsuna-san has already brought Chibiusa-chan and the Quartet here to help us defend Earth, so-" 

"-hey, get out of the way!" 

"We want to say hi!" 

"Stop shoving, I'm gonna'-" 

The look on Haruka's face when the four younger-and-far-less-mature sailor senshi dove at her from the side was priceless but short-lived; within seconds she had been toppled out of her seat (Michiru wisely stepped back out of the way) and landed on the floor, out of sight, with a loud thump and a growl. In her place the Sailor Quartet- in their civilian clothing- crowded in from of the screen. Chibiusa, who continued to giggle insanely, was still visible just behind them, and Hotaru was peering over their shoulders, seeming unable to curb her own curiosity. 

"Serenity-sama...." 

"Ne, Hime-sama...." 

"....Serenity...." 

Para Para was the first to do more than utter one word at a time; "hee, hee," she giggled, her childish nature shining through, "Serenity-sama, you sure do make a funny-looking guy, what with the odangos and everything." 

"Ack! Para Para! Don't say that!" 

"What? I'm just-" 

"You're insulting our Princess!" 

"Don't you mean Prince?" Jun Jun snickered. 

"Oi...." Usagi groaned, wishing he could hide under a rock somewhere. Beside her, Seiya was laughing again, barely able to keep her feet under her as she did so. The comment about Usagi being a 'Prince' had sent both her, as well as Yaten and Hikaru, over the deep end. 

Flopping back onto the chair he had been sitting in, Usagi rested his elbow on the arm and in turn propped his head up on his hand. "Could this get any more embarrassing?" 

"Ne, Usagi!" Chibiusa cried from the screen, "we could get Mamo-chan!" 

THAT little comment sent the Quartet into hysterics as well, and the senshi could have SWORN they heard Haruka's laughter in the background.... 

"Children...." 

The sounds of Michiru and Setsuna- for some reason, Haruka was absent from their effort, and suspicious chuckling could still be heard in the background- came through the computer, making Usagi sigh. Maybe someone would be able to control what was going on. Finally, Michiru's amused voice came through the speakers. 

"Well," the senshi of Neptune sighed, "as you can see, we have things well in hand. And, I assume, Kakyuu-hime and the Starlights can take care of you while you....adjust...." she broke off and took a breath. It was obvious she was attempting not to laugh again. "....to the way things are now." 

"Hai." Luna agreed. 

"So we will see you in a few days." Michiru continued, "and until then-" 

"-take lots of pictures!" Chibiusa hollered, her voice cracking with laughter. 

"Chibiusa!" Rei practically shrieked. It wasn't like Rei to loose it with Chibiusa, but the raven-haired ex-girl was practically turning crimson. Of course, part of it was probably from embarrassment, but.... "cut that out!" 

More giggles. 

"Usagi-chan?" Setsuna's voice asked as the Keeper of Time appeared on the screen next to Michiru. "Are you there?" 

"....hai." Usagi said tiredly. Standing again, he approached the computer with far more caution than the previous time. 

Setsuna eyed him for a moment and then smiled and shook her head. "We still expect reports." She said, "and, Usagi?" 

"Hai?" 

"Get Seiya-san to take you out shopping...." 

"Setsuna!" Usagi gaped at the normally serious senshi of Pluto. "You, too?" 

"Gomen, Hime-sama." 

"You mean Oji-sama!" One of the Quartet cried, causing more giggles. 

"You girls are so grounded when you get back to the thirtieth century!" Usagi shouted, raising his voice to be heard over their laughing and making Michiru and Setsuna wince. "You wait and see! You too, Chibiusa!" 

"Aw, Usagi, we're just-" 

"Can it, twerp!" 

"Baka!" 

"How dare you speak to me like-" 

"Anyway," Michiru smiled nervously and waved a hand, "Haruka and Hotaru-chan say goodbye so....ja ne minna-chan!" The connection was severed then, but not before she and Setsuna burst into girlish giggles to match those of the Quartet and Chibiusa. 

"Oi," Usagi groaned again and ran a hand through his bangs. "This couldn't get much worse." 

And it was Seiya who responded, grabbing his hand, "yo, Odango! It's time to take you guys shopping!" 

Hikaru laughed again, leaning closer to Amai to whisper; "Striker would LOVE this...." 

"Let's go!" Seiya shouted enthusiastically, starting to drag Usagi away. 

"You spoke too soon, Usagi...." Minako told his friend, even as Yaten- contrary to what she normally would have done- latched onto his wrist and dragged him up out of his seat. The others were soon herded out of their OWN seats by the remaining Starlights (Taiki had already volunteered to help, and Hikaru, Amai and Josei were having too much fun not to join them) and soon all eleven young people- five male and six female- were headed for the nearest tailor's shop. "You spoke too soon...." 

"Ne, Artemis?" Luna asked once they were out of sight, leaving the two cats alone with Kakyuu. 

"Hai?" 

"....do you wish you'd stayed behind?" 

Artemis grinned a feline grin; "are you kidding?" He chuckled, "I wouldn't miss this for the world!"   
  


_____________   
  


Me: K, see? Lots of pointless stuff. Like I said, though, I'm having fun writing it. Oh, but minna? It's kind of confusing sometimes....he....she....him....her....I'm so used to writing Usagi & Co. as girls and Seiya, etc. as boys....oh, but I'm doing alright. Oh, and Striker and Keeper are going to be in the next chapter. Look for them! Ja! 


	4. Somewhere Over The Shoe Department

Disclaimer: Didn't, don't and won't ever own Sailor Moon! 

I also don't own Kira-san (Star Striker) and Aoi-san (Star Keeper), the two other new Starlights that appear in this chapter; they belong to Cassandra Sisenta. I just asked if I could borrow them for parts of this story. (Gomen Cassandra-san! I said Kira and Aoi would be in the last chapter, but they weren't. This chapter for sure!) 

Ah, but I DID make up Hikaru (Star Hunter), Josei (Star Dancer) and Amai (Star Dreamer) so if you happen to like them enough to want to use them, just ask and it's really no problem. I just want to know where they're going. ^_^   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~Somewhere Over The Shoe Department~

  
  


"There!" Seiya stepped back, a very accomplished look on her face, to regard Usagi's new ensemble. Frowning, she considered and then looked around the store they- as well everyone else, making the place rather crowded- were standing in. Her eyes landed on a large vase and she grinned. "Wait one second." Pulling a rose from the center of the vase, she broke off the majority of the stem and stuck the flower into Usagi's jacket pocket. "Now THAT's more like it!" 

"You guys and your rose obsession...." Josei chuckled. 

Turning a bit to the left, Usagi regarded himself in the full-length mirror in front of him; the outfit he was wearing was suspiciously similar to what Seiya had worn during concerts on Earth- a red suit with a black shirt underneath and a matching red tie. The rose in his pocket was red as well....not that he was all that surprised, though. Red was Seiya's favorite color, and this was what he got for letting the Star Senshi pick his clothing for him. 

Of course, the others weren't all that far off from Usagi; Yaten had dressed Minako in a similar suit of navy blue, while Ami chose one in a lighter shade of blue. Makoto was dressed in hunter green, which brought out the color of his eyes, and Rei- after much arguing- had allowed Josei and Amai to dress him in black to match his hair. 

Usagi was the only one with a rose, though. 

"Now," Seiya announced, tossing her ponytail back over her shoulder; "we have to do something about your hair." 

"My hair?" 

"Hai!" Yaten agreed from across the room; "no man in his right mind would wear his hair in odangos....okay, so no WOMAN in her right might would wear HER hair in odangos, either, but that's beside the point." 

Usagi glared. 

"Well, come on." 

"Huh?" A blink as Seiya reached up and tugged the elastics out of his hair, freeing it from the odd-looking odango hairstyle. Once down, it hung nearly to his ankles; as a girl that had been fine, but as a guy Usagi felt strange with it. The black-haired senshi pulled at the blonde locks, frowning in concentration. "Uh, Seiya....what are you doing?" 

"One sec." Seiya replied, wrapping the elastics back around Usagi's hair and pinning it in a low ponytail that was reminiscent of the Starlights. The tail was longer than her own, but Seiya shrugged that off. "There ya' go!" She grinned and pointed at the mirror; "see? Ne, Odango, you make a pretty cute guy!" 

Usagi blinked at himself. Oi, this is weird. 

They had been in a small shopping district near the Palace for nearly two hours. It had taken most of that time to convince the Earth Senshi that it was alright to simply choose clothing that they liked; the economy on Kinmoku was different than on their planet, and being with the Star Senshi (who were somewhat of celebrities on Kinmoku) meant that their outfits were absolutely without cost. None of them were comfortable with just walking out of a store without physically PAYING, so they were hesitant to try anything on. 

Seiya's insistence- as well as the assurance of the others- was the only reason they had actually begun to shop. 

Normally, any of the Earth Senshi would have jumped at the chance to do what they were doing. Shopping with the Lights, that is. And not having to pay for the things that wanted? It was a dream come true! 

Or would have been, had they not been preoccupied by the changes to themselves. 

Rei was the one who seemed to be adjusting the best, and Makoto came in a close second. The raven-haired senshi already had the perfect attitude to go with the new body, and Makoto was just very accepting. Usagi and Ami were on a par, both still uncomfortable, but not particularly upset anymore, and Minako....well, Minako was getting a taste of what Yaten's life had been like on Earth. 

At that moment, the silver-haired Star Senshi was fighting with him over the bow in his hair- 

"You can't wear that! Jeez, are you stupid or something?" 

"Oi, Yaten! Give that back! I always have my bow on!" 

"Minako-KUN, you're a guy now, remember?" 

"Ne, Yaten-CHAN! I don't CARE! Give it back!" 

-but Yaten was more determined than Minako had expected, and within a minute or two she had managed to yank the strip of red ribbon out of the blond's hair. With Minako still glowering at her angrily, she did much the same as Seiya; she tied Minako's hair back in a low ponytail, binding it with the ribbon she had stolen from him. Once she was done, she surveyed her work. 

"It'll do for now, I guess." 

And at that she clamped herself onto Minako's right arm. She had been doing that ever since the senshi of Venus had managed to get into his suit, and showed no intention of stopping any time soon; giving Minako a taste of his own medicine, everyone assumed. 

"Here-" Josei removed a length of black ribbon from her own violet hair and held it out to a surprised Rei. "You need to at least tie your hair back, too." 

Rei growled, but snatched the ribbon and quickly pulled his hair back. 

Makoto had already done the same, simply lowering his ponytail and pinning it at the base of his neck with the same bobbles that he had always used. Somehow, they didn't look at all strange on a guy. 

"Well," Taiki sighed, "where to now?" 

"I'd say to the hairdresser," Seiya grinned; "but I might get lynched." 

Usagi gave her a sharp look. "I'm NOT cutting my hair." 

"Ah, well, that's alright." The black-haired senshi shrugged nonchalantly, "you look fine like this." 

"So I repeat," Taiki raised an eyebrow, "where to now?" 

"Shoes." 

"Um, huh?" 

"Shoes." Josei repeated, blinking when everyone stared at her blankly. "I mean....you guys need shoes, too, right? You can't wear those-" she nodded, indicating the school-issue-shoes they were all still wearing; "-around, especially with those suits, ne?" 

Hikaru chuckled, "it DOES look kind of funny." 

"Hikaru," Amai said softly, "they're trying." 

"I know, I know." The aqua-haired girl waved her friend away, "don't worry about me, I'm just an idiot." She stretched her arms over her head and then clasped her hands behind her neck. "Anyhow," a yawn, "no offence, but once we've got some shoes can we go and do something FUN? Shopping is NOT my thing...." 

That much had become obvious to the Earth Senshi within ten minutes of getting to the shopping district when Hikaru had uttered her first yawn. She had been looking particularly bored for most of the time they had been there; a look that Yaten echoed, except for when she was bothering Minako. 

"Like what?" 

"I dunno'." A shrug, "ANYTHING!" 

"Oi," Amai sighed, "Hikaru...." 

"Ne, Amai-chan?" 

"You're a pain." 

Hikaru stared at the soft-spoken Starlight beside her and then feigned a hurt look. "I always knew you hated me." She pouted for a long moment before giving the other girl a wink, "but somehow that doesn't bother me in the least!" 

"I know." 

"Um," Ami interrupted, rubbing the bridge of his nose; "shoes?" 

Taiki chuckled. 

"Right!" Seiya smacked her forehead with the heel of her hand; "I almost forgot. Um, let's see....ne, Josei, where's there a good shoe store around here?" 

Josei blinked, "why are you asking me?" 

"You suggested shoes!" 

"Y-yeah, but-" 

"Down the block." Another voice told them. "The second last store on the right." 

Seiya bristled visibly, turning to look at she who had spoken with an only partially-concealed frown on her face. Her arms crossed over her chest and she stared at the two figures who were standing just-inside the shop doors. 

One was a tall, full-figured woman with firey red hair, a cross between wavy and curly, that was pulled back into a Starlight ponytail. Her silver eyes were terribly intense and nearly impossible to read, and she regarded Seiya with a semi-smirk. 

The other was a blonde woman, quite a bit shorter than her companion, with straight hair- like with the red-head, it was pulled into a low ponytail, with the exception of whispy strands that hung in front of her ears. The depth of her blueish-green eyes was amazing, and she gave off a calm aura to contrast that of the taller woman. 

Usagi, at least, was struck by the resemblance they bore to Haruka and Michiru. Not in looks but in the way they carried themselves, the way the stood, and the impressions they gave at first glance. The height difference was even relative to that of the two Outer Earth Senshi that he was thinking of. 

More Starlights? 

"Where was I when shopping was decreed part of senshi training?" 

Seiya glared at the red-haired woman. "Can it, Kira." 

"Well? I thought you three were training the new recruits." 

"We are, just not today!" 

A snort. "Oh? You take days off from being a senshi now?" 

"You should try it." 

"And loose my edge?" 

"You never had one to begin with." 

The redhead narrowed her eyes at Seiya. Seiya, for her part, was fuming. 

"Kira," the blonde rested a hand on her friend's arm and shook her head, then looked around at the rest of the group. Her eyes landed on Yaten and she smiled. "Ne, Yaten, since when do you cling to men?" 

Yaten grinned, "try women, Aoi." 

"Pardon?" 

"These would be the Earth Senshi we've mentioned." Taiki told them, "you remember?" 

The blonde blinked a handful of times, obviously trying to wrap her mind around what Taiki had just said. Beside her, the woman who had been bickering with Seiya raised an eyebrow doubtfully and glanced around. 

"From what you said-" 

Taiki cut her sentence short; "it's a long story." 

"Anyway," Yaten separated herself from Minako, who rubbed his arm lightly and grimaced. The silver-haired girl snickered at that and waved her hand in a vague gesture; "the one in red who's standing with Seiya is Usagi, the one in black is Rei, the one in green is Makoto, the one Taiki's with is Ami and this-" she tugged at Minako's ponytail. Minako shot her a look and crossed his arms. "-is Minako." 

"Everyone," Taiki continued, "meet Kira and Aoi." 

"Um-" 

"Kira's the one that Seiya is glaring at." 

"I am NOT glaring." Seiya snapped at Yaten. 

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." 

"Are they Starlights too?" 

Aoi smiled at Ami; "Sailor Stars Keeper and Striker, at your service." 

"Ne, I thought there were only three Starlights-" 

"-six!" Hikaru interjected. 

"Six." Makoto corrected himself. "So...?" 

"Striker and Keeper are reminiscent of your Outer Senshi," Taiki offered. 

"I THOUGHT they reminded me of Uranus and Neptune." 

Kira looked toward Usagi, "from what I've been told, there are similarities, yes." 

"Oh." 

"Usagi, was it?" 

Usagi nodded. 

"An odd name of a man...." 

A suffering sigh, "I know. I never used to be a man." 

A careful smile graced Kira's face and she glanced toward Seiya before continuing; "ah, but you make quite the handsome one." 

"Uh-" 

Seiya's hands clenched into fists and she tapped her foot on the ground, openly scowling at Kira. "Look, if you don't mind, we're kinda' busy right now." 

Kira smirked, "so I see." 

"Now, now," Aoi shook her head at her friend, "we should be going anyway, Kira." 

"I suppose." Kira nodded even as Aoi was turning to leave. Pausing at the door, she waved to the group and winked lightly at Usagi, making Seiya see red. Male or female, whether Usagi was a guy or a girl, jealousy still reared it's ugly head. "Well, my friend, see you later, shall we?" 

"Sure...." 

"Ja!" She vanished out the door after Aoi, leaving them to stare after her. 

There was a moment of silence as the Earth Senshi considered what they ad just witnessed- all of them were feeling an odd deja vu. The likenesses between Kira and Aoi and Haruka and Michiru were somewhat unnerving. The five of them were also struck by the obvious rivalry between Seiya and the redheaded Kira. 

"Ne, Seiya?" Usagi asked, eyeing the fuming girl; "are you alright?" 

"Yes." 

Hikaru began to laugh. "Seiya and Kira have never gotten along." 

A snort from Yaten as she re-attached herself to Minako's arm, despite the blond's attempts to dissuade her. "Thank you Hikaru," she said sarcastically, "for the understatement of the year." A pause. "It's my opinion that Seiya suffers from a terrible case of hero-envy-" 

"Yaten!" 

Taiki had to physically stop Seiya from throttling the other girl. "I do NOT envy Kira!" 

"Yeah, okay." 

"Look," Josei sighed from a few feet away, where she was standing with Amai. "We still have things to do before we go back to the Palace, right? Let's get going." 

"Aw, MORE shopping?" Hikaru whined. 

Everyone ignored her. 

"As it is, we're just crowding the poor store owner." Ami agreed. 

There was a collective nod and- much to the shopkeeper's happiness- they all piled out into the street. Taiki guided Seiya, who was still staring at Yaten as if her glare could cut the other girl in half. Usagi followed after them, trying to figure out what it was about Kira that Seiya didn't like. They both had the same stubborn, dominating personality. 

Plus I think she hit on me. 

A sigh. That would be the problem. 

I should let her know that she has nothing to worry about. 

"Ne, Seiya?" Usagi said, catching the black-haired girl's attention. 

"Yeah?" 

"I-" 

And he was interrupted by a scream.   
  


_______________   
  


Me: Okay, see? Kira-sama and Aoi-sama were in this. Um, they weren't in it for a lot, but they're going to make cameos in most of the rest of the chapters, too. I hope I wrote them well enough for Cassandra-san's liking; if not then I'll have to change some of it and re-post this chapter. Ne, Cassandra-san? Whatta' ya' think? 


	5. Three Stars With One Bird

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon; no way, now how! 

....I also don't own Kira-san (Sailor Star Striker) and Aoi-san (Sailor Star Keeper). They belong to Cassandra Sisenta, who was kind enough to let me borrow them for this story. I did, however, make up the other three new Starlights that feature in Walk A Mile; Hikaru (Sailor Star Hunter), Josei (Sailor Star Dancer) and Amai (Sailor Star Dreamer.) If anyone likes them enough to want to borrow them for a fic of their own, just ask and as long as I know where they're going it's no problem. ^_^ They were just meant to be secondary character in this story, but I think I might do another one in which they have a larger part. Does anyone think they're worth the effort?   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~Three Stars With One Bird~

  
  


"STAR LOVING HARMONY!" 

"Shimatta, you missed!" 

"GREAT job, Dancer!" 

"Like I meant to miss?" 

"You still DID!" 

"Bite me, Hunter!" 

"Focus, guys! Now's not the time!" 

A sigh. "Tell me again why we're doing this?" 

Seiya shook her head at Usagi's question and turned to look at him. They, as well as the other two original Star Senshi and the senshi from Earth, were standing on the roof of a nearby building, simply watching as Sailor Stars Hunter, Dancer and Dreamer attempted to defeat the youma-of-the-moment. 

It had come as somewhat of a surprise to the Earth Senshi that there WERE youma on Kinmoku. But, as Yaten had less-than-politely pointed out, why would there even be Kinmoku senshi if there were no youma? 

I suppose it makes sense. 

"See?" Seiya nodded toward where the newest Starlights were still battling the bird-like youma. As if on cue, the creature's feathers stood on end and it dove at Dreamer. Seiya tensed, then relaxed when Dancer jumped across the youma's path and shoved Dreamer out of the way of the attack before whirling to deliver one of her own. "Much as I hate it," Seiya told Usagi, raising her voice so the rest of the senshi could hear her; "Kira was right. We ARE training the new Starlights, and this is as good a way as any-" 

"Ne, Seiya, you AGREE with KIRA?" 

"Shut up Yaten." 

"You guys are just like I remembered you." Makoto chuckled. 

"Hai." Minako agreed with a suffering sigh. "Only more feminine." A long pause and then; "damn it! Yaten!" 

"Hm?" The silver-haired Star Senshi asked sweetly from her place- still clinging to Minako's arm. 

"Would you just get the hell OFF m-" the blond broke off suddenly and blinked. He looked at Yaten- who was giving him fake-innocent eyes- and then blinked again. "You know, this is very familiar somehow...." 

Yaten snickered. 

Rei snorted. "You think?" 

"Ne, Yaten," Taiki sighed, looking at the other girl critically. "Enough is enough already." 

Yaten stuck her tongue out. "All's fair in love and war, Taiki." 

"What the hell is THAT supposed to mean?" 

"I think she's just TRYING to be annoying." 

"That's a distinct possibility." 

"Guys!" Minako whined, tugging at Yaten's fingers and trying to pry her off himself; "a little help here?" 

"Shh!" Seiya held a finger to her lips and glared at them in warning. Gesturing toward the street below where Hunter, Dancer and Dreamer were fighting, she raised an eyebrow. "We're supposed to be watching out for them!" 

"Agreed." 

The voice was familiar and had the same effect as before on Seiya, who grit her teeth and turned to face the person that had spoken, hands clenched. Kira and Aoi- or rather, Sailor Star Striker and Sailor Star Keeper- stood a few feet behind them on the roof. Striker's hands were on her hips and she was staring at them flatly; Keeper had her arms crossed and was watching the fight beyond on the street. 

"Man, what do you want NOW?" 

Striker leveled her gaze on Seiya. "When Kakyuu-hime charged you with training them, I think she expected you to actually TRAIN them." She sighed and rolled her eyes skyward; "or are you to busy flirting with Usagi-san to do your job? I should have known you couldn't control yourself with your 'Odango' around." 

"You!" Seiya snapped; "shimatta. I'm NOT-" 

"I'm fairly sure you are." 

"-are you-" the black haired girl gaped at Striker. "It was YOU who was flirting!" 

"Pardon me?" Striker demanded, "with WHO?" 

"How did it go?" Seiya pretended to think, then; "-'you make quite the handsome man'?" 

Behind her, Usagi flushed brightly. Oh no....here we go.... 

Striker's eyes narrowed as they had before. "What I say to others is none of your-" 

"Striker!" Star Keeper's hand went to her partner's arm. "Look-" 

"Huh?" 

Down in the street, the battle continued to rage. But something was wrong- 

-Hunter was down. 

Sprawled on the cobblestone of the sidewalk, she clutched her arm to her chest; it was twisted at an odd angle. Broken? Possibly....Dancer and Dreamer were standing between her and the youma, poised to defend her. The youma shrieked and launched itself at Dreamer, obviously intending on going THROUGH her to Hunter....Dreamer dove to the side....Dancer grabbed the youma on the way past.... 

"Dreamer, go-" 

"I CAN'T! Not with you there-" 

"Just do it!" 

"But if I attack, you'll get-" 

On the nearby roof, the senshi- both of Earth and of Kinmoku- watched in alarm; they themselves had been in that very situation before. Or, most of them had. Rei for sure- he was barely managing to contain himself, reaching for his henshin pen. Flashes of fighting Nehelenia and having to nearly-shoot Neptune raged in his head. 

"How the hell did that happen?" Yaten demanded; "we only looked away for a second!" 

"That's all it takes." Keeper sighed, looking at Striker. "Shall we?" 

"Hai." 

"Well then," the blonde Star Senshi nodded to the others and then leapt forward, vanishing over the edge of the building in a blur of black leather, ponytail flying behind her as she dashed toward the training senshi. 

Striker watched her go before her silver eyes landed on Seiya again. "Keeper and I will take care of this," she told her. A smirk. "So don't you strain yourself or anything. Ja!" And with that she jumped after her partner. 

"Hey you-!" Seiya leaned over the edge of the roof; "you-! Argh!" 

Usagi watched a vein in Seiya's head practically pop out of her skin, and wasn't surprised to hear her grumbling under her breath. She DEFINITELY didn't get along with Kira....but it wasn't the time to think about something that trivial. Even as his eyes followed Seiya's hand, the black haired girl was reaching for her Star Yell. 

"Seiya! Striker said not to-" 

"Striker said? I don't give a damn! Fighter Star Power! Make-Up!" 

"Impulsive as always, I see." 

"Stupid is more like it." Yaten snorted and released Minako for a moment to reach for her own Star Yell. Star Fighter was already jumping down to the street and heading toward the 'battlegrounds'; "Healer Star Power! Make-Up!" 

There was no way to back up now.... 

"Maker Star Power! Make-Up!" 

"Venus Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

"Mercury Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

"Jupiter Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

"Mars Crystal Power! Make-Up!" 

"Moon Eternal! Make-Up!" 

Flashes of light and the transformations were complete; the Earth Senshi looked down at themselves expectantly....and found their female bodies had been restored. Despite the situation, bright smiles lit their faces; everyone including the normally restrained Sailor Mercury. Star Maker would have chuckled, had she not been more concerned with Fighter and Healer, who had rushed headlong into the fight after Striker and Keeper.... 

"Yosh!" Venus exclaimed happily; "we're back to normal!" 

Mars agreed, but wasn't as enthusiastic as her friend. "Venus, it's great but now's not the-" 

"I know, I know, time is the eternal rainstorm." 

"I think you mean river." Jupiter observed with a chuckle, "and that particular saying is totally out of context in this case." 

"Huh." The blonde senshi crossed her arms. "Fine. Whatever. Let's go already." 

"Agreed." 

Below, the Star Senshi were having more trouble than they should have been....the youma that had originally looked so powerless was giving them a VERY hard time; it didn't help that Fighter and Striker couldn't get along even in a battle. Their arguing was hindering their fighting skills....Keeper was attempting to hold the youma back, with Dancer and Healer's help. Striker and Fighter were, supposedly, backing them up. Sort of. Hunter was still on the ground a few feet away and Dreamer was on her knees beside the aqua-haired Star Senshi, checking to make sure her friend was alright. 

She wasn't alright, per say, but she wasn't about to die.... 

"They can't get along at all?" Sailor Moon asked incredulously, "even in a FIGHT?" 

Maker shook her head. "They carry on like this in public all the time....in front of our Princess and the court....they're-" 

"A pain in the ass?" Mars suggested. 

A heavy sigh. "Hai." 

"Ne...." Mercury rubbed a temple, glancing up at Maker, whom she was standing next to at the edge of the roof. The taller senshi was regarding the scene below with a mix of pity and embarrassment. "Pain or not, we should help them." 

Again. "Hai." 

At that point, their attention was dragged back to the battle below by Healer's shout. 

"STAR SENSITIVE INFERNO!" 

The attack connected squarely with the bird-youma, throwing it backward; feathers flew in all directions and she creature staggered to it's feet. Almost-electrical burs marred it's body as it shook itself to clear it's head after Healer's attack, making a handful more of it's feathers disconnect and flutter to the ground nearby. 

"Wai!" Venus cheered, "Healer got....it?" 

Her voice trailed off when the youma smirked (and interesting thing to manage with a semi-beak) and screeched loudly. And before their eyes the feathers that had been discarded- and quickly replaced as new ones grew in to cover the creature's bare-and-charred flesh- shifted in an invisible breeze and GREW. 

And grew. 

And grew- 

-into exact replicas of the youma they were facing already. 

"Ack!" Sailor Moon took a step back, her eyes wide. "How-?" 

"Doesn't matter." Jupiter cut her off, preparing to jump down and join in the now-greater battle. "Ready?" 

"Yup!" Mars replied, cracking her knuckles with a grin. "It's been a while, ne?" 

"Not long enough?" Maker suggested, glancing at Mercury. 

The blue-haired senshi nodded. "To my way of thinking." 

"Ah, but you were never all that adventurous." Venus winked at her intellectual teammate. 

"Are we going?" Sailor Moon asked, glancing back down to the street. 

The seven Star Senshi that were already there had their hands full; youma incarnates had them fighting desperately, practically surrounded. Dreamer was on her feet now, attempting to defend Hunter. Hunter, for her part, was doing something....setting her own arm? That was what it looked like. The situation was serious enough that even Fighter and Striker were managing to handle working together....they weren't even arguing....as much.... 

"Let's do this thing!" 

Sailor Moon glanced toward Venus at her enthusiastic shout. "Alright." And then she walked forward from the shadows of the roof. Stepping up onto the ledge, she waited for the others to join her and then leaped down to the ground below. "Hey!" She called dramatically, catching the attention of everyone in the street, senshi and human alike. "We were just trying to enjoy a visit with our friends, and with a few TINY hitches, we were managing it! I'm not about to let you-" she pointed, a gesture that encompassed all of the youma. "-ruin it for us! Fighting for love and justice-" the normal speech began as always. "-pretty soldier in a sailor suit! Sailor Moon! And in the name of the Moon-!" Her arms crossed and she continued; "-I'll punish you!" 

The youma- all of them- blinked at her blankly. 

"Ne, Odango?" Fighter said from across the road where she was grappling with one of the youma- original or incarnate, they couldn't tell. "Maybe you should shorten it up a bit next time." 

Sailor Moon scowled. "See if I ever-" 

A shriek. 

"Sailor Moon!" 

"Abunai!" 

"Huh?" The odango-haired senshi whirled just in time to avoid being knocked to the ground by one of the youma. "Ahh! I remember this! I DON'T LIKE THIS PART!" A wail and she scrambled out of the way as the bird-creature attacked again. "Help!" 

"MARS FLAME SNIPER!" 

Mars' attack struck the attacking youma and it exploded into flames, burning down to nothing but ash. 

"An incarnate?" Venus asked. 

"Hm." Mercury nodded, activating her visor. Next to her, Maker took up a defensive position, obviously intending to watch her back while she worked. "Yes. The original wouldn't combust in the same way....hang on and I'll try to find the real one-" 

"Work fast, Mercury!" Jupiter suggested. One of the youma launched at her and she caught it before it could reach her throat. Holding it back, she struggled to keep herself from being strangled. "As fast as you can, anyway!" 

"Hai!" 

Where were all of them coming from? Every time one went down another appeared.... 

"Is it still shedding feathers?" 

"I think!" 

"Hunter, are you alright?" 

"Argh. Yeah. Just....trying to get my elbow back....in place...." 

"Thanks for the mental image, Hikaru." 

"No....problem...." 

"What about you, Keeper?" 

"I'm doing fine. Mercury, how's it coming?" 

"Working as fast as I can! I just-" 

"Mercury, watch you!" 

"Abunai, Ami-chan!" 

"STAR GENTLE UTERUS!" 

"Arigato Maker-san!" 

"Keep working." 

"Hai!" 

They were still multiplying....how-? 

Fighter and Jupiter were both still struggling with their own respective youma; Striker and Keeper were back-to-back, keeping each other safe; Dreamer continued to protect Hunter, who was still working on her own elbow; Mars was (very snidely) saving Sailor Moon from a particularly nasty-looking youma that was attempting to strike from behind; Venus, Healer and Dancer were in a semi-circle, managing to keep each other safe; Mercury continued to work with her visor and Maker defended her while she did.... 

Still more youma.... 

What are we going to do?   
  


______________   
  


Me: Okay, so I couldn't have it be complete idiocy all the time, right? ^_^ There's youma and etc. so there's going to be at least one fight. So....yeah. There goes chapter five....I'm sorry it took so long for this one to get out but I've got a bunch of stories on the go....anyway....ja? ^.^;; 

  
  



	6. Home Is Where The Soda Is

Disclaimer: I soooo don't own Sailor Moon! ^_~ 

Also, Kira (aka Sailor Star Striker) and Aoi (aka Sailor Star Keeper) don't belong to me. I've borrowed (may also be read as 'kidnapped' ^.^;;) them both from Cassandra Sisenta, who was kind enough to give me permission to use them. 

HOWEVER! Hikaru (aka Sailor Star Hunter), Josei (aka Sailor Star Dancer) and Amai (aka Sailor Star Dreamer) are characters that I created, just for the sake of creating them. I needed extra characters, so.... *shrug* Meh. I like them, though, I think I'm going to write a kind-of sequel to this later so I can use them again.   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~Home Is Where The Soda Is~

  
  


One youma, two youma, three youma, four.... 

"STAR SERIOUS LASER!" 

"STAR MYSTERIOUS RAY!" 

Despite their rivalry, Fighter and Striker, when not bickering, made a formidable team in battle. They really were very much alike- not that anyone was willing to tell them that- which was the reason they were constantly butting heads, but when it came down to it, they both took the task of defending Kinmoku seriously. 

Now, while Mercury continued to work furiously at her computer, they were managing to keep the youma back far enough that THEY were in no danger. The problems all lay with the others; Hunter had managed to set her elbow back in place (with a sickening crunch that had made several of the senshi wince) but would be out of commission for the remainder of the battle and Dreamer was defending her, meaning two less Star Senshi on their side. The rest of the senshi were doing well enough, with the exception of Sailor Moon.... 

"Shimatta! Sailor Moon, GET OUT OF THE WAY!" 

"Itai!" 

A shriek from the blonde senshi as Jupiter tackled her to the ground, leaving Venus free to attack. 

"CRESCENT BEAM!" 

Another incarnate went up as ash. 

"Arigato, Jupiter!" 

"No problem." Jupiter grinned, "but now's not a good time!" 

"Right!" 

The battle continued....the Earth Senshi using their own attacks to drive the feather-incarnates back....Star Maker watching out for Mercury while she attempted to find the original youma....Keeper and Dancer helping Dreamer to defend the downed Hunter....Fighter and Striker back-to-back and not arguing at all.... 

It couldn't go on forever, though.... 

"There!" Mercury shouted suddenly, excited. She reached up and tapped an earring, deactivating her visor. "Sailor Moon, it's the one near Healer!" 

"Huh?" The Moon Child looked up; "alright Mercury!" And she called the tier to herself with a grin; "now we'll see who's tough!" Steeling herself, she raised the wand; "SILVER MOON! CRYSTAL POWER KISS!" 

"Ack!" Healer had to dive out of the way. "Oi, watch it!" 

A wince; "gomen ne, Healer!" 

Healer cast a scathing glare in Sailor Moon's direction, but was distracted before she could say anything else; an ear-piercing shriek from the youma- "beautiful!"- and it was nothing once again. A tiny star-shaped stone fell down into the pile of ash that had once been a monster, reminding the Earth Senshi of the times they had battled the Four Sisters, and the incarnates that had been created from discarded feathers vanished without a trace. 

"Yosh!" Sailor Moon threw her arms into the air happily; "one more youma bites the dust!" 

"Good job Sailor Moon." Fighter commented. 

The other senshi flashed a peace sign; "no problem!" 

"No problem?!" Healer demanded, "you almost fried ME!" 

"Yeah....sorry about that." 

"Sorry?! Are you KIDDING? You-" 

"Healer," Jupiter chuckled, "she didn't mean to." 

Sailor Moon pouted, "it was kind of important, you know. I didn't have time to-" 

"Speaking of important-" Dancer interrupted while she and Keeper helped Hikaru- who had already de-transformed and was back in her civilian clothes- to her feet. "We need to get Hikaru to a doctor to see about her arm." 

"Oh yeah, Hikaru!" 

"Are you alright?" 

The girl grinned weakly and winked. "No biggie." 

"Still," Dancer said firmly, "to the doctor we go." 

"Hai." Hikaru heaved a suffering sigh and allowed Dancer to drag her down the street by her good arm. 

After a moment, Dreamer hurried after them. "Sayonara!" 

"Well," Keeper frowned, concerned, "one of us should go with them, so...." 

Striker nodded. "You and I?" 

"I was thinking, yes." 

"Alright." The redheaded senshi agreed, then turned to Fighter. "This could have been worse, Fighter. Count yourself lucky it was only a dislocation that Hunter suffered; she could have been killed." 

"Like we meant for this to happen?" 

"It still did." Striker shook her head, "it was stupid to leave them on their own like that." 

Fighter scowled, "how were we supposed to know that-" 

"It doesn't matter." The other senshi shrugged, "what's done is done, but maybe you should have a discussion with Kakyuu-hime about the definition of the word 'train'." 

"You-" 

"Come on Striker," Keeper steered her partner down the road after the trainees, casting an apologetic glance back. "Ja ne!" 

"Hn." Fighter crossed her arms. "Jerk." 

If Sailor Moon hadn't known better, she would have thought that Fighter was pouting....but that couldn't be it....could it? After a moment, the black-haired senshi's arms returned to her sides and she de-transformed, leaving her in the clothes she had been wearing before. Healer and Maker did the same without hesitation, then turned to regard the Earth Senshi with amusement; not a single one of them had de-transformed yet.... 

"Do you think-?" Venus asked hopefully. 

A shrug from Jupiter, "only one way to find out." 

"What do YOU think, Mercury?" 

"Well...." 

"That doesn't sound good." 

The blue-haired senshi shrugged nervously, casting a glance around at the expectant faces of her friends. "I....can't tell you. But I don't think anything will have changed from before just because we de-transform for a second time." 

"So you're staying we're still stuck as guys?" 

"Probably." 

"Oh man." 

Yaten began to laugh, "would you just get it over with?" 

"Hai, hai...." Sailor Moon groaned and willed the transformation to reverse. Ribbons vanished in the blink of an eye and Usagi heaved a sigh. "So," he said, "I guess Ami was right. What do we do now?" 

"We're not done shopping." Taiki pointed out. "You all still need shoes." 

"Shimatta." Yaten snapped, at the same time latching herself onto Minako's arm. "Do we have to do more shopping?" 

"You sound like Hikaru." 

Sarcastically. "Huh. Thanks for that, Rei." 

"....about Hikaru...." Makoto pursed his lips. "I'd like to go make sure she's alright." 

"Hai, me too." Ami agreed. 

"I guess." Rei nodded, "I'm going too. What about you guys?" 

"I'm going wherever Minako's going." Yaten told them, patting Minako's arm. "Ne?" 

"Yaten!" The blond whined, glaring, "not again! Please!" 

"Oi, Minako-kun, is there a problem?" 

".....Yaten...." Minako's voice had lowered to a growl. 

Before things could get out of hand, Makoto laughed and herded the two of them down the street. Rei followed out of concern for Hikaru, and Ami was close behind; and naturally, Taiki followed the Mercurian senshi. Yaten and Minako's bickering faded as they walked, leaving Usagi and Seiya in silence. 

She still looks mad. Usagi looked at Seiya appraisingly, "ne, Seiya? You want to get a drink or something?" 

"Whatever." A shrug, then Seiya sighed. "Gomen, it's just that Kira's got me all riled up." 

"I see that." 

"Like I said, sorry." 

"Not a problem." Usagi grinned, "so what about that drink?" 

"Yeah, sure." 

"Great. Lead the way!" 

Seiya managed a soft chuckle. "Come on then." 

The shop that Seiya took him to was quite a lot like the Crown in Tokyo; at least, it was the same homey atmosphere and friendly people. The building itself wasn't really similar, but that didn't matter; Usagi mentioned his observations to Seiya, who smiled and informed him that she and the other Starlights had asked Kakyuu if they could build it after returning to Earth. Since there was nothing like the Crown on Kinmoku, and they'd missed it, Kakyuu had given them permission. 

"Welcome to the Uchu." 

The shop was galaxy-themed, the paint in a blue and black scheme to simulate the sky. Stars had been painted on the ceiling. Usagi was startled to identify several constellations among them, some from Earth's sky and some that he had seen in the sky above Kinmoku. 

"So? What do you think?" 

"Hm?" The blond blinked and looked at Seiya, who was sitting across from him in the booth. "Oh, it's cool. It DOES remind me of the Crown. You know, I'm glad this place is here. I've only been on Kinmoku for a day or so and I'm already kind of homesick. No offense." 

"None taken. I was homesick when we were on Earth, too." 

"Really?" 

"Sure." Seiya nodded. "But I couldn't let it show, being an idol and all." 

Usagi stared at her. "You HAD to bring that up, didn't you?" 

"Yeah, well, I like remind people that I'm a superstar." 

"You're bragging." 

"Am not." 

"I think you are." 

"Are you kidding? One thing Seiya-sama does NOT do is brag." 

Silence as Usagi struggled to keep from laughing at the serious look on Seiya's face. Did she really believe what she was saying? She had to, or she wouldn't be saying it. Seiya didn't lie, after all. Or at least, not often.... 

But come on! Seiya-sama? She's calling herself by the name the crazy fans called her- er, him. Whatever. 

Luckily, the waitress came by then and he was saved from having to comment. 

"Hi there! What can I get you?" 

It was then that Usagi realized he didn't even know what kind of things they drank on Kinmoku. 

"Um...." 

"We'll both have a cherry soda." Seiya offered, "that's okay, right?" 

"Yeah, yeah!" 

"Alright then, two sodas." The girl smiled, "you know Seiya, we haven't seen you around here lately. I was starting to think you and the others had abandoned us." A wink, "but it seems I was mistaken." 

"We've been busy." Seiya shrugged, leaning her head on her hand. "Gomen." 

"The life of a senshi?" 

"Hai." 

"Anyway, who's this? Your boyfriend?" 

"Something like that, yeah." 

Usagi's jaw tightened and his eyes narrowed. "I'm STILL not dating you!" 

Why was it that no matter what happened, he had to keep repeating the same things over and over again. Of course, the conversation had been slightly different this time; the word 'boyfriend' in place of the word 'girlfriend'. But still....and why did Seiya seem to find it as amusing as she had on Earth? 

The waitress giggled, "hard to get, ne? Well, I've never known a guy who could resist you before." 

A blink from Usagi, "what was that?" 

"Oh, nothing!" Seiya quickly waved it off, "she doesn't know what she's talking about!" 

"Now I'm hurt." The waitress stuck her tongue out jokingly, then turned to go. Looking at Usagi, she grinned, "it's only a matter of time, you know!" Another giggle; "I'll be right back with your drinks." 

"Heh, heh...." 

"Seiya, what was that all about?" 

The black-haired girl shrugged nervously, "who knows? You know waitresses, always babbling randomly. They never make any sense. I think it's part of their job description or something-" 

"Right now YOU'RE not making any sense." 

"So?" 

"Does that mean you're a waitress?" 

"Um, what?" 

"....never mind." 

Seiya eyed him, leaning back and resting an arm on the back of her seat. "You're just as odd as I remember you, Odango." 

"Right back at you." Usagi shook his head. "Seriously, was what that waitress was saying true?" 

"What was she saying?" 

"Don't play dumb, Seiya." 

"Ne, Odango, why do you care about my love life?" 

"Huh?" Several blinks as the blond now-man considered; "well, I....don't know...." 

Seiya's face broke into a sly grin, "you know what I think? I think you want me and-" 

"Here's your drinks!" 

"Ack!" Usagi jumped when the waitress appeared- seemingly from nowhere- with a tray, to set their sodas in front of them. Having been interrupted, Seiya simply cut her sentence off and very gladly took her drink. Usagi less-enthusiastically took his, and both were silent as the waitress left again. 

Why DO I care? The Moon Child thought, frowning, it's stupid, but ever since I got here I've been....huh. I dunno'....different. He glanced up at Seiya, who was watching him with interest, Seiya makes a very pretty girl. Why didn't I notice that when she was on Earth? For that matter, why do I care now? Shimatta. This being a man is very sucky. 

Turning back to his drink, Usagi found himself continuing to stare at Seiya. 

And Seiya's eyes were on him, too. 

"The tides have turned, Odango." 

"Hm? What was that?" 

Seiya grinned, choosing not to explain. "Roles reversed, tides turned....whatever way you want to say it." A shrug and she pushed her drink away before standing. "Anyhow, I'm done. Let's get back to the Palace; I DO want to check on Hikaru." 

"....okay." Usagi nodded and followed Seiya out of the Uchu- 

-and found himself watching her walk. 

Shimatta. 

The male hormones were going to be more trouble than he'd originally thought. 

Was it like this for the Starlights on Earth? 

He made a mental note to ask one of them- NOT Seiya- when he got the chance. 

Because Kami-sama knows I don't want to have THAT discussion with Seiya....   
  


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Me: I think I'm about halfway done, now. There's probably going to be about 12 or maybe 15 chapters all together. Still pointless. Yup, I know. ^.^;; I'm already planning another story after this one. It's going to be Digimon Tamers & Sailor Moon, but I don't want to start another story until I've finished one of the ones I'm working on now. *shrug* I'm also planning on doing another Starlights story about Hikaru, Josei & Amai. Well, eventually....ja! 


	7. A True Gentlewoman Doesn't Kiss And Tell

Disclaimer: I still don't own Sailor Moon....not that I haven't tried.... 

And I don't own Kira (Sailor Star Striker) and Aoi (Sailor Star Keeper), either. I borrowed those two characters from Cassandra Sisenta, who was kind enough to let me use them for this story because I love them so much. ^_^ Arigato again Cassandra-san! If you happen to like Kira-san and Aoi-san and want to read more with them, they feature in a few of Cassandra's fics (seeing as how she invented them and all) but are major characters in Stars Align To Destiny, which is on my favorites list if you wanted to check it out. ^_~ 

Anyway, the other three 'new' Starlights that appear in "Walk A Mile" are my own characters that I created for this story. (Hikaru aka Sailor Star Hunter, Josei aka Sailor Star Dancer and Amai aka Sailor Star Dreamer.) If you happen to like THEM and want to read about them some more, I'm planning on doing a story featuring them in the near future. Also, if you (by some strange twist of fate) decide you want to use them in a fic of your own, please just e-mail me and it should be fine. Thanks!   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~A True Gentlewoman Doesn't Kiss And Tell~

  
  


"Ne, Hikaru, how are you feeling?" 

The aqua-haired girl grinned. "Never better!" 

Usagi eyed the sling that Hikaru's arm was currently in with a slightly disbelieving expression; Seiya simply shrugged, taking the other girl's word for it. They had arrived back at the Palace about the same time that the doctor was finishing with Hikaru, and had waited until everyone- or mostly everyone- else left before popping in for a visit. They didn't intend to stay long, really, as they had other things they both needed- or so they claimed- to do. They just wanted to make sure she was alright. 

"Keep what the doctor said in mind," Kira's voice said sternly from the corner where she was seated. "If you need anything, ask someone to get it for you. You have to rest for at last a day or two, just for your arm to start to heal." 

Seiya glanced back over her shoulder at Kira, scowling. She was still riled up from their previous- ahem- conversation. 

Not that Usagi was all that surprised. 

Hikaru stuck her tongue out at the redhead. "Yes, MOTHER." 

Aoi, from where she was standing, a few feet away from her partner, chuckled. 

Given Hikaru's independent frame-of-mind and her impulsive- not to mention reckless and rebellious- nature, it had been decided (in a quick conference after the doctor was through with her, and not including Hikaru herself who was very put out by that fact) that someone should keep an eye on her, at least for the first day of her recovery. 

Kira and Aoi were the ones who'd volunteered for the first shift. 

"I'm serious." Kira leveled her gaze on Hikaru. 

"Hikaru," Aoi sighed tolerantly, "if you don't rest your arm can't heal, ne?" 

"I know, I know....you guys worry WAY too much." Hikaru cast her eyes skyward and then looked toward Usagi and Seiya; "pray you never get hurt and have to have THESE two as your nursemaids." 

Both of the Outer Starlights seemed to blink at that. 

Seiya snickered. "Kira? A nursemaid? I can picture it...." 

"Seiya-" Usagi began warningly, watching from the corner of his eye as the red-haired senshi tensed and frowned, a dangerous glint in her silver eyes. "Um, isn't there somewhere that you need to be-?" 

Another giggle, "-in one of those pastel outfits nurses on Earth wear, with the little hat, too...." 

"Seriously, Seiya-" 

But she wasn't paying attention. Far from it; she simply continued to giggle.... 

In her corner, Kira looked ready to kick her. 

"Hey-" Hikaru interrupted in an attempt to halt the massacre that was BOUND to happen if Seiya's teasing and laughter was permitted to continue. "You know," she glanced around. Aoi cast her a grateful look as she continued; "I REALLY don't need to be babysat. Don't you two have things that you could be doing?" 

"Sure, Hikaru, and leave you alone to mess up your elbow even more?" 

"We know you too well for that, my friend." 

"No, no!" Innocent aquamarine eyes. "I SWEAR I'll just stay in bed." Hikaru held her hands up, "senshi's honor. Are you kidding? Besides, I'm TIRED." She paused for effect and made sure to throw in a yawn. "The doctor gave me these little pills for pain-" a vague gesture toward the night stand. Sure enough, there was a pill bottle there. "-and they're really wiping me out." 

"Hikaru-" 

"Come on, like you guys want to hang out in my room all day while I sleep?" 

"She's got a point." Usagi reluctantly agreed. 

"Great!" Hikaru grinned and proceeded to snuggle down into the thick blankets of her bed, "ja!" 

It was a dismissal if any of them had ever heard one, yet no one made a move to leave the room right away. Kira stared almost-blankly at the mound of blankets that her current charge was buried under. It was clear that the redhead hadn't been expecting Hikaru to simply tell them to leave.... 

"Come on Kira," Aoi tugged at her friend's arm; "she's right. We should let her sleep in peace." 

"Huh? But Aoi, I don't think-" 

"Do you really want to stay?" The blonde asked, "come on! We'll go to the Uchu and get a sundae." She smiled brightly, "I'll even buy." And when Kira still refused to budge, she glanced at Seiya and Usagi; "or maybe I'll treat Usagi-san and Seiya, instead?" 

Kira was on her feet in the blink of an eye. 

"There now." Aoi patted Kira's shoulder and then steered her out the door and down the hall; "it's not every day that I say I'll pay, so you should be happy. Besides," a giggle, "you didn't REALLY want to be a nursemaid, did you...?" 

Her voice- and Kira's muttered reply- trailed off as they got farther away. Finally, Usagi turned to Seiya with a sigh. "We should go, too." A pause and he crossed his arms, repeating what he had said earlier; "didn't you have somewhere to be?" 

"....hai." The black-haired girl nodded, "I should go and see Kakyuu-hime....I need to talk to her and explain about Hikaru." 

"Good idea." 

"Duh. All my ideas are good ones, Odango." 

"Um, Seiya? Kira TOLD you to talk to Kakyuu-" 

"What's that supposed to mean?!" 

"Guys!" Hikaru's muffled voice called from under her covers. A second later and the aqua-haired senshi was sitting up in irritation, "can you take it outside? I mean, jeez! I'm TRYING to get some shuteye here. At least Aoi-san and Kira-san were willing to LEAVE before they started talking again." 

"Um...." 

Usagi had to laugh. "Gomen, Hikaru. C'mon, Seiya-" 

Before he could finish, though, Seiya had grabbed his arm and dragged him out, shutting the door behind them. Surprised, the blond raised an eyebrow, and Seiya simply shrugged. "What? We WERE just kinda' standing there." 

"You're weird." 

"Says he who up until an hour ago wore his hair like takoyaki and noodles, ne ODANGO?" 

"Shut up." 

Seiya grinned. "Anyhow, I'm heading off to have that talk with Kayuu-hime. You can look around the palace, if you want. Hey! Find someone to show you to your room, since we didn't have the chance to show you before." 

"Who am I supposed to find?" 

"I dunno'." Seiya shrugged, already heading off. "Ask Taiki. Or kidnap Yaten for a minute; I'm sure Minako'd appreciate getting away from her for a little while, anyway. Not that he doesn't deserve it, mind you." 

Usagi completely agreed. He'd been witness to Minako's 'attacks' on Yaten when they were on Earth, and turnabout was fair play. Or, as Minako would say; 'to play fair you have to turn around!' (And then the senshi of Venus would throw in a wink as if nothing were wrong, even while everyone in the vicinity was gaping blankly.) 

Whatever. 

"Oi, Seiya, wait for-" 

But the Star Senshi had already vanished into the depths of the Palace. 

A suffering sigh. I guess she DID have to speak with Kakyuu-hime, though. 

But how was he supposed to find someone to show him his room if he didn't even know where HE was, never mind where everyone ELSE was. He hadn't exactly had a chance to explore the Palace and get his bearings before being dragged off to shop for suitable clothes.... 

....Usagi looked around. Hikaru's quarters- which he was still standing in front of- seemed to be at the intersection of three hallways. The hall which Kira and Aoi had taken went left, presumably leading to an exit of some kind, and the one that Seiya had vanished down went right. To the Throne Room, or some other place where Kakyuu might be? Alright, that made sense. 

What about the third one? 

He had NO idea, but given the direction it must have lead farther into the Palace. 

Damn Seiya for leaving me here. I'm going to be wandering around this place for YEARS before I find anyone- 

"You don't know where to go, do you?" 

"Ack!" Usagi jumped and spun. "Hikaru!" 

The girl chuckled and leaned against the doorframe on her uninjured side. "Gomen. I didn't mean to scare you like that." Her eyes flicked left, then right, and finally forward and down the third hallway. "You're lost, aren't you? Come on, I'll show you where the guest quarters are." 

"Shouldn't you be in bed? I thought you were going to sleep." 

Hikaru shook her head with a wink. "Nope. I just wanted them gone." 

"Um...?" 

"You think I wanted Kira and Aoi hovering over me all afternoon?" 

"Ah." 

"And at that point, Seiya was in the room, too, so...." 

Usagi had to grin. "Point taken." 

"So," the Star Senshi pushed off from the doorframe, careful not to bump her sling-encased arm, and started down the middle hall. After a few steps she paused and turned to address him again. "If you follow me I'll take you to the wing of the Palace where the guest quarters are. Seiya SHOULD have taken you herself, but she probably wanted to see how long it'd take you to stumble upon it yourself." 

Dryly. "Probably." 

Amused. "But that's Seiya for you, ne?" 

"Hai...." the blond rubbed his temple. And sometimes she gives me a headache.... 

"Well?" 

"Hm?" 

Hikaru rolled her eyes and turned around to start walking again, ponytail waving in her wake. 

"Oh!" Usagi exclaimed, understanding. "My room! Yeah, I remember now...." 

"Now that I've met you," Hikaru commented from ahead, "I understand why Yaten said Seiya's 'Odango' nickname suits you." 

"What was that?" Catching up, Usagi eyed the girl suspiciously. "Why?" 

"Your hair, for one, though it's better now." A glance at Usagi's now-ponytail. "But Yaten was also saying that 'Odango' suited your personality to a T. No offense, but it describes your thought process perfectly." 

"My thought process is 'dumpling'?" 

Hikaru laughed. "It's hard to explain." 

"Knowing Yaten, I think I get the idea." 

Another laugh. "I think I like you, Tsukino Usagi." 

"It's hard not to like someone as beautiful as me." 

"You mean 'handsome', ne?" 

"You like me, huh?" Usagi chose to ignore Hikaru's comment and quickly moved on. He was tired of hearing about the- differences- between himself on Earth and on Kinmoku. "Well, I think I can handle you as well, Kou Hikaru." 

"Thanks a bundle." 

"You're as bad as Minako." 

"Uh-?" 

"Never mind." He shook his head. Thanks a bundle? Nice....she's got Minako's sense of sayings. And she's a cross between Minako, Seiya and Yaten as far as I can see. Whoa. THAT'S a scary concept.... sighing, he looked toward Hikaru again. The girl seemed to have a permanent grin on her face. "Hey, Hikaru, can I ask you a couple of things?" 

"What? Like twenty questions?" 

"Nah. More like three." 

"Oh, hai. Shoot." 

"I was....at the Uchu earlier with Seiya and the waitress said something I wondered about." 

"What was it?" 

"Something to the effect of 'I've never known a guy who could resist you yet' and 'it'll only be a matter of time'." Usagi frowned; "the thing is, I'm just not sure what she was talking about...." 

"Oi!" Hikaru began to laugh; "she was talking about Seiya's somewhat infamous love life." 

"Um, pardon?" 

"She's got a reputation for being something of a player. She's always got some guy chasing after her, and she's left a huge trail of broken hearts in her wake; I don't think she MEANS to do it, but it just kind of happens." 

"Sounds like Seiya on Earth, too, with all the fangirls...." 

"Oh?" Another laugh; "next question, please?" 

Usagi considered. "How did you and the others get to be Starlights?" 

"You mean Josei and Amai, ne?" Hikaru's grin turned into a slight frown for a split second before returning in all it's glory. "They pick Starlights based on attributes, I guess. Um....like Yaten was chosen to be Star Healer for her empathy and Taiki was chosen to be Star Maker for her intelligence. Aoi was picked to be Star Keeper for her ability to bring people together. Then Seiya was chosen as Star Fighter for her leadership skills, and Kira for her combat skills." 

"I see." 

"When they were choosing three new Starlights, after Kakyuu-hime and the Inners returned from Earth, Amai was picked as Star Dreamer for her connection to all things mystical- she just seems to have a link to the senshi magic. Josei was chosen as Star Dancer for her compassion and kindness, and I...." she paused, "....to tell you the truth, they never really told me WHY I was chosen as Star Hunter, but I suspect it has something to do with my devotion to Kinmoku and Kakyuu-hime. Although...." a chuckle; "Seiya's tried to tell me that they just needed a clown among the ranks of the Star Senshi, and Kakyuu-hime has mentioned my ability to make people laugh...." 

"Huh." The blond shrugged, "maybe. People can't take things too seriously, after all, or everything they're fighting for gets out of perspective." 

Hikaru blinked at him. "Very profound, coming from someone who people call 'dumpling head'." 

"Hikaru?" 

"Hai?" 

"Shut up, please." 

The aqua-haired girl laughed. "Gomen, gomen." 

"Suuure you are." 

"Seriously. Gomen ne." She stopped walking and gestured down the hallway they had come to. "This is the main hall of the guest wing. I think Taiki went at and posted name-tags on the doors so you'd just look for your name, I guess." 

"Arigato. Third question?" 

"Hai, but I thought you were looking for your room?" 

"I am, but I still want to ask some things." 

"Okay, go." 

"Um, this is going to sound stupid....but how come all you Starlights have the same last name?" 

Hikaru giggled. "The name 'Kou' is added after we're chosen to be Starlights. It just identifies us, I suppose." A shrug. "But then, it sounds like we're all related now and I'm not sure how I feel about being related to Seiya." 

"Think about how Kira feels." 

"Oi...." 

Usagi chuckled, pacing down the hall to find his room. "Mizuno Ami....Hino Rei...." he trailed a finger down the nameplates as he went. "....Kino Makoto....ah!" Stopping, he tapped the tag. "Tsukino Usagi! Well, Hikaru, this is where we part ways, ne?" 

"I suppose." The aqua-haired girl gave a short wave with her good arm and headed back down the hall. "You know, I'm not going to be around when you need to get OUT of here....you're still going to be wandering lost...." 

"I know...." the Moon Child said mournfully. "I know!" 

"Sad, Usagi-san...." 

"Baka." 

"Ja!" 

"Sayonara!" Waving brightly to his new friend, Usagi opened the door and stepped into the room designated as his. He was confronted by pink....a sigh. Kakyuu-hime had given him a VERY pink-themed room, based on the knowledge that it was his favorite color. But it didn't seem very appropriate now that he was a guy.... 

"Took you long enough to get here." 

"Huh?" Usagi stared blankly at Seiya. The girl was seated on a chair near the desk. "Um, Seiya? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with Kakyuu? I thought you were-" 

A shrug. "I talked with her and then came here. And had to wait, which means that you took a long, LONG time!" 

"I wouldn't have taken so long if YOU had've shown me the way." 

"I was busy!" 

"Yeah, yeah." 

Seiya chuckled and stood, shoving the chair back. "You know," she said, an odd glint in her eyes; "we haven't been really ALONE since you got here...." 

"Uh-" 

"....and you know I like to spend time with you, Odango." Reaching Usagi, Seiya smiled. "No, Odango, do you think Haruka-tomboy would be upset if you had a fling while you were here? You are a guy, after all, so it doesn't really count...." 

Doesn't really COUNT?! Usagi looked at Seiya nervously. "Um, Seiya I-" 

"Now, now," the black-haired Star Senshi tapped a finger against his lips. "I never got a chance to so this when we were on Earth-" leaning forward, Seiya brushed her lips against his. "Tell me 'no' if you want, Odango. Say the word...." 

But much as he was shocked by Seiya's actions, he couldn't seem to dredge up the power to push her away. Heart pounding and completely silent, he allowed the girl to kiss him again....being with Seiya was something Usagi had never dreamed possible....as the future Queen there was Crystal Tokyo to think about.... 

....but as a guy there was no way to be QUEEN, right? 

"Odango...." Seiya murmured. 

Usagi's eyes closed and the black-haired girl ran her hands up to link them behind his head. 

This is....wrong....isn't it? 

"Ne, Usagi-chan!" 

"Ack!" Usagi jerked away from Seiya at the sound of Minako's excited voice and spun to face his friend. "M-Minako! I, uh-" 

The senshi of Venus stood in the doorway- 

WHY didn't I shut the door? 

-gaping at them. His jaw was practically hitting the ground....and Yaten- who was still attached to his arm- was doing basically the same thing. Their mouths worked but nothing was coming out. 

"Hey!" Seiya said, "what's going on?" 

"I....we were...." Minako stammered; "um....Yaten and I....we goaded Makoto and Aoi into a bake-off....and....came to tell you....but it looks like you're....busy...." 

"What the HELL are you doing?!" Yaten demanded, cutting off Minako's babble and releasing his arm to throw her hands into the air. 

A shrug and a half-grin from Seiya as Usagi attempted not to turn cherry-red. "I'll never tell." She informed a seething Yaten, then stepped past her fellow senshi and into the hall beyond. "Come on! A bake-off between Makoto-san and Aoi-chan? That's something I HAVE to be around for!" 

She was taking things way too lightly for Usagi's tastes.....   
  


_________   
  


Me: *sigh* This chapter turned out kind of long, ne? *blinkness* I didn't mean it to, it just kind of did. I dunno'. Anyhow, when Hikaru was explaining what attributes each of the senshi were chosen for, I used the basics that Cassandra Sisenta decided on in her fic. Why? 'Cause they sounded plausible and I couldn't think of anything better. Gomen if it upsets anyone! Ja. 


	8. I Bake, You Bake, We All Clean

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon! Ha! So there lawyers.... 

Ne? I also don't own Kira-san and Aoi-san (aka Sailor Star Striker and Sailor Star Keeper)- they belong to Cassandra Sisenta! I just asked if I could borrow them, and Cassandra-san was kind enough to let me! Yosh! 

Wai! Minna-san! Have you heard the news? I won an award for "Walk A Mile"! I'm very happy about this, can you tell? I put a ramble on my profile, too, but it's gone now....it's just a big deal because I've never won an award for my writing before. Plus, I didn't know that this story was going over THAT well, and I didn't even know I'd been nominated. ^_^ It was a pleasant surprise in my inbox, to say the least. Anyhow, thanks to whoever it was who nominated me and/or voted for me. I appreciate that people like my writing! Doumo arigato minna-san! And so we come to the end of this particular rant....ja!   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~I Bake, You Bake, We All....Clean The Kitchen?~

  
  


"Can I talk to you for a minute?" 

Usagi cringed at the tone in Minako's voice, but didn't have a chance to respond before the blond had turned- pushing Yaten forcefully out into the hallway after Seiya- and shut the door behind her. Facing his friend again, Minako narrowed his eyes and took a deep breath, making Usagi wince. 

"Minako, let me explain-" 

"Look, Usagi-chan," Minako crossed his arms; "it's none of my business and I know that, but when have you ever known me to stay out of things that aren't MY business?" A smirk. "Seiya's always had a thing for you, ne? What I want to know is what YOU were thinking." 

"I...." Usagi gulped and trailed off, then; "I really don't- it just kind of HAPPENED and-" 

"Usagi, do you have feelings for her, too?" 

"I....don't know....I think....n-not the way she feels for me, but-" 

The blond across from him raised an eyebrow; "then maybe you should let her know things can't be that way between you, before someone gets hurt." His arms uncrossed and he patted Usagi's shoulder. "Shall we go to the bake-off now? Being this serious for this long is wearing on my nerves." 

"This long?" Usagi blinked, then laughed. "It's only been five minutes-" 

"EXACTLY!" 

"You're as nuts as a guy as you are when you're a girl." 

"Doumo arigato!" 

Usagi looked at his friend- somehow, who was closer to him than Naru had ever been, and possibly even closer to him than Ami- and couldn't seem to summon up more than a blank stare. "That wasn't a compliment, Minako...." 

"Really?" 

"Um, hai." 

"Oh." Minako looked crestfallen. "Well....fine then." Sticking his tongue out childishly, he opened the door and ushered Usagi into the hall; "let's go before all the baking is gone! I've heard that Aoi-san's cooking is practically legendary, you know." 

"Who'd you hear that from?" 

"Yaten, who else?" 

"Hm." 

Again, Usagi found himself out in the corridors. And again, he had absolutely no idea how to get to where they were going. Which reminds me- following after Minako, who was swiftly making his way down the hall, without so much as a second guess about directions; "ne, Minako, where are we going?" 

"Duh." The blond rolled his eyes, "the kitchen. Unplug your eyes, Usagi." 

Unplug my-? Usagi shook her head. I don't want to know. 

"What's wrong?" 

The Moon Child looked up at his friend, blinking. Minako seemed to be truly baffled as to why Usagi was confused; but then, the senshi of Venus had never understood- even when very bluntly told- that the sayings he (or, formerly she) continually spouted were butchered by the time they passed his lips. He never paid attention in writing class? Maybe....in the past, Minako had been too busy ogling the guys in school- Yaten in particular, once they reached highschool- to really listen to any sensei's lesson.... 

"Nothing's wrong," sighing, Usagi shrugged. "Nothing...." 

"Confused, ne?" 

The question posed by Minako was unexpected to say the least. "Um, pardon?" 

Minako waved a hand, gesturing for Usagi go keep up. "About Seiya, I mean." 

"So....what makes you say that?" 

"Well, you're all quiet and thoughtful, right? And you look a little confused, which is why I said it....you should talk to her as soon as you can, ne?" The blond grinned. "Anyway, look-" he pointed ahead, "'round that corner and we've reached the kitchen. This whole Palace is easy to get around, really-" 

"I needed a guide." Usagi informed him sheepishly. 

Minako's eyes flitted to him before returning to the corridor ahead, and he stifled a laugh. "Is that so?" 

"Shut up." 

Innocence practically radiated from him as he said; "nani? What? I didn't say a thing!" 

"I hate you." 

"I love you, too, Usagi-chan!" Pushing open the swinging double doors to the Palace kitchen, Minako ushered Usagi inside, practically shoving in his haste, before proclaiming; "ne, minna! Gomen ne for being late!" 

Rei snorted from across the room. "What else is new with Odango Atama?" 

Usagi glared at the raven-haired senshi, sticking out his tongue. Rei's eyes narrowed before he echoed the blond's sentiments. Next to Rei, Ami's eyes closed in resignation; some things would never change. 

"So!" Minako clapped his hand together, "how goes it?" 

Following his friend farther into the rather LARGE kitchen (he was fairly amazed by the size of it, actually, but should have expected nothing else from a Palace), Usagi surveyed the room; Makoto and Aoi- the two 'contestants'- were standing near the center island, which was laden with baking supplies. They were both wearing aprons (though the one Makoto was wearing looked a little odd on a man) and chatting happily about all things cooking-related. 

Across from them, Ami and Taiki seemed to be measuring out portions of flour and other baking products, presumably to be used later on. Rei was leaning next to Ami, watching the blue-haired now-boy work, and Seiya was next to Taiki, sitting cross-legged on the counter top. 

A ways down the room, Yaten was seated on a stool- one of several that lined a section of the counter- with her head propped on her hand, watching things happen with only minimal-interest. Minako, despite his complaining about the silver-haired girl's constant weight on his arm, walked over and perched on a stool next to her. 

Finally, Kira was standing by herself nearby to where Yaten and Minako were sitting, arms crossed and a half-amused look in her silver eyes; Usagi could only guess as to what the redhead would find amusing, though it could have been the thought of a bake-off in general.... 

Finally, as everyone else appeared to be busy- talking, preparing ready-to-use baking supplies, whatever- the blond decided to head over and stand with Kira, who eyed him curiously as he approached. 

"Hey." 

Kira raised an eyebrow. "To what do I owe this pleasure?" 

Usagi shrugged, "nothing, I guess. I was just curious-" 

"About what?" 

"What you find so funny." 

A blink and Kira's half-smile became a grin. "Ah, I see." She chuckled. "I'm just thinking how there's really no contest, here. Aoi-chan will mop the floor with Makoto-" a pause and then she glanced toward Makoto and added; "no offense." 

"None taken." The brunet shrugged it off and went back to his conversation. 

But Usagi couldn't put Kira's comment aside so easily. "Really...." he tipped his head to the side; "you've never had Mako-chan's cooking, obviously." 

"No, I haven't." Kira agreed, then pointed out; "but you haven't had Aoi-chan's, either." 

"Mako-chan's chocolate chip cookies are to die for." 

"Aoi-chan's brownies are practically ambrosia." 

"Um, nani-?" 

"The food of the Gods-" Kira began to explain, then shook her head. "Never mind. You'll see-" 

"Yeah? Well Mako-chan's strawberry shortcake-" 

"Aoi-chan makes the best shortbread cookies on Kinmoku-" 

There was a long pause as they both broke off, noticing that the rest of their kitchen-mates were staring at them. Makoto and Aoi were both shaking their heads, neither one prideful enough to either agree with, or disclaim their friend's boasting. 

"Hm." Taiki said softly, "this should be interesting." 

"Interesting?" 

"Hai...." 

"Ne, Odango!" Seiya called from her seat on the counter; "I'll wrestle you for the first piece of the cake they're making-" 

"Nani-?!" 

"You might regret that offer," Rei warned her, casting a mischievous glance in his sovereign's direction. "You've never been between Odango Atama and her food. It's a dangerous, dangerous thing." 

Usagi bristled. "Listen, you-" 

"Seiya's the same way." Yaten informed them, "you should see her cram food into her mouth at breakfast-" 

"Yaten!" 

"What? It's scary to watch, is all-" 

Seiya glared at the other girl, who's eyes were closed as she spoke. "You'd better-" 

"All I'm saying is-" 

Fuming, Seiya reached blindly for something to throw in Yaten's direction- anything!- and her questing fingers locked on to the first thing they encountered. And, it being Seiya, she didn't bother to LOOK before she flung what she was holding. 

It just happened to be one of Ami and Taiki's pre-measured packets of flour. 

....it would have been fine, too, had her aim been on-target; she would have hit Yaten and the silver-haired girl would have had an attack and run from the room to fix herself up, vain creature that she was.... 

Unfortunately, not only did Seiya not look at WHAT she was randomly throwing, she didn't look at WHERE she was throwing it- just knowing the general direction and not the more accurate trajectory- and the baseball-sized packet of flour slammed into Kira's shoulder, catapulting it's contents across her face and turning her fire-red hair to a ghostly-white. 

Uh oh.... 

There was a sudden stunned silence, followed by Yaten bursting into hysterical giggles. 

"Seiya!" Kira shouted, shaking her head and creating a flour-cloud that made Usagi cough. "You are SO dead!" 

"Jeez, I didn't mean-" 

But it was far too late; Kira had already picked up a flour-packet of her own and lobbed it across at the black-haired Star Senshi; and her aim was far better than Seiya's had been. Besides that, Rei, Ami and Taiki were intelligent enough to step back and out of the way- the flour hit with a muffled thump and exploded in a cloud of white, coating Seiya practically from head-to-toe. 

"Ack!" Seiya sneezed violently and turned a venomous glare on Kira; "oh yeah? Take-" 

Usagi, fearing for his own safety, quickly dove out of the way as a third packet- this one containing what appeared to be cinnamon- flew past, heading for Kira. His fears were unfounded, however, as the packet barely skimmed the redhead's shoulder and continued on to slam into Minako; the blond's hereto amused laughing stopped all together when he found himself covered in fine brown powder. 

"Seiya no baka!" 

"Ah! Gomen Minako!" 

Beside him, Yaten continued to laugh; the hilarity of the situation even had her holding her sides....until Minako grabbed an egg from the nearby carton, and smushed it- shell and all- into her hair. 

"AHH!" A horrified shriek sounded from the emerald-eyed girl, and was followed by her frantically attempting to scrape the shattered eggshell and it's sticky contents out of her hair. When the task proved impossible, she turned on her 'attacker' and lunged for him, wiping the slimy remnants of what had once-been-an-egg into Minako's own blond locks. 

All the while THAT confrontation had been taking place, Makoto and Aoi had been slowly edging around to the other side of the counter, any thoughts of actually BAKING something forgotten.... 

Ami and Taiki had done the same, and were standing out of the way to avoid most of the terribly-immature impromptu food fight. Or, baking-supply fight. Rei, who had originally been right alongside them in their retreat, would have been out of the way as well- had Minako not decided that because his hair was a goner, everyone else should be messy as well. 

Two more raw eggs flew across the room to splat against the front of Rei's blazer, followed by laughing from both Minako himself and Yaten, who had somehow decided to form a tag-team.... 

And so the senshi of Mars became a willing- and very determined- participant. 

Usagi, for his part, found himself not-quite-cowering (but close to it) behind the center island, just diagonal from where Seiya was making her stand against Kira. The Star Senshi's leader was very well prepared; Ami and Taiki had left at least two dozen bags of various powders that were just BEGGING to be thrown- 

Oi, this is crazy! 

"Ne, Odango-?" 

Before he could look up or respond, something landed on top of his head with a 'whump', and he had to blink past a haze of white....icing sugar? There was enough in his nose and mouth to tell.... 

Seiya! She- Laughing despite himself, Usagi decided- as he was now as dirty as the rest of them- that he wasn't going to take Seiya's assault lying down. And he knew just the thing to put her in her place.... 

Standing quickly, Usagi noted with a grin that Seiya had returned her attention to Kira, who had somehow, in the confusion- and through the growing cloud of flour and flour-related-products- managed to side with Rei. Ignoring Ami, who was giving him 'please, don't!' looks from the safety of behind-the-counter with Taiki, Makoto and Aoi, Usagi snatched up one of the bowls the two baking gurus had left out. 

I bet you thought that shot with the icing sugar was funny, ne Seiya? 

Across the kitchen, Minako caught sight of him through the haze of powder and elbowed Yaten, who was in the process of hurling the last egg (not to mention the last of their ammunition) at Rei. Yaten blinked, narrowing her eyes, and then broke into a huge grin.... 

He got a thumbs-up from both of them, and Kira was watching him expectantly. 

"Ne, Seiya?" Usagi asked sweetly, catching the girl's attention; and when she turned to look; "that bag of sugar was a cheap shot." 

With that, he simply upended the bowl- filled nearly half full with semi-mixed cake batter- and dumped both it and it's contents over Seiya's head, covering her in gooey almost-cake. 

"Odango!" Seiya came up sputtering, cake batter dripping from her from the shoulders up. 

Silence, followed by explosive laughter. 

"Oi, Seiya!" Yaten crowed; "now we can just stick YOU in the oven!" 

Her comment sent Kira- who, naturally, found the scene VERY funny- into hysterics; the redhead ended up bent over and pounding on the counter, and Rei had to pound on her back to save her from choking to death. Usagi smirked, very pleased with himself....and then Seiya jumped at him, bent on soaking HIM in the same cake batter- 

"What in Kami-sama's name is GOING ON IN HERE-?" 

Seiya froze in mid-leap at the voice as everyone spun toward the door. Just inside stood Josei and Amai, looking more shocked than anyone would have thought possible; both Starlights-in-training were gaping at the scene before them, seeming unable to come up with words.... 

"My God!" Josei exclaimed finally, perfectly aware that she was speaking to her elders and teachers. "We leave you alone for one MINUTE, and this is what happens!" A sigh and she turned to Amai; "do I get the mop out for them, or do you?"   
  


**********   
  


Me: Ah, gomen that this chapter took so long, but I hit a bit of a block and just got over it last night. See, I had insomnia and got hit by inspiration around 6: 30 am (after laying awake all night) so....lesse....*looks at the clock* Now it's 7:34 in the morning. Wonderful. I have to work tonight, too. Maybe I should go and get some sleep, ne? Until next time! Ja! 


	9. Trouble With A Capital 'K'

Disclaimer: I happily announce that I don't own Sailor Moon! (Even though I'm not happy about THAT part....LOL, and arigato gozaimasu Takeuchi-sama, for creating Sailor Moon for us!) 

I also don't own Kira (aka Star Striker) and Aoi (aka Star Keeper). They belong to Cassandra Sisenta. She let me borrow them, though. Isn't that nice? ^_^ I do own Hikaru (ala Star Hunter), Josei (aka Star Dancer) and Amai (aka Star Dreamer)- I invented them for this story (and ended up using them in at least one other....) Anyway, the point to this is 'please don't borrow any original characters without permission.' There. 

Ne, gomen ne minna. It's been a while since the last chapter n'all....thing is, my family's having a crisis right now and I'm in the middle of an almost-nervous-breakdown so I haven't been writing as much. (I'm afraid my current state will affect my writing and it won't be as good, or won't follow the storyline.) Anyway, I've managed to get into the right mood to write some more of Walk A Mile, so....   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~Trouble With A Capital "K"~

  
  


"You've got to be kidding me! You had a FOOD FIGHT?!" Hikaru narrowed annoyed aqua eyes and attempted to cross her arms, which didn't work out so well due to the sling/cast that was still encasing the injured one. "We wander around the palace doing nothing all the time! We wake up, eat, train, go to bed and do it all again the next day! There's almost NEVER anything fun- I mean, not like THAT!" Her mouth fell into a pout. "So then I get hurt and the first thing you do once I'm bed-ridden is have a food fight?" 

"Hey," Josei waved a hand to catch the sulking nagareboshi's attention, and then pointing meaningfully toward Seiya, Yaten, Usagi and Minako, who were standing near the doorway. "It wasn't US, Hikaru! Amai-chan and I had nothing to do with it. Talk to THEM!" 

Hikaru glared at them. "You guys suck." 

A snort from Yaten, and the other three all grinned nervously. 

"You know, Hikaru, really it was all Seiya's-" 

"Ack!" Seiya's head snapped around and she glared in Minako's direction. "What?! Don't you DARE try to blame me for-" 

"You're the one who threw the flour at Kira!" 

"Well she-" 

"Seiya?" Yaten asked, suspiciously sweetly, "you have some cake in your hair." 

Seiya glowered and shut her mouth. Josei rolled her eyes and Hikaru couldn't help but snicker; the aqua-haired girl had been surprised to say the least when the five senshi who were currently standing in front of her had come to deliver her lunch. The last thing she had expected as the tale they'd told her about- of all things- their food fight.... 

"Ne, Usagi?" Josei asked suddenly, "where's everyone else, anyway?" 

The blond frowned, "Mako-chan stayed to help finish cleaning up with Amai, right? Well, then Ami-chan and Taiki-san made an escape to the library as soon as they could, Rei ran off to his room to change, and I think Aoi-san had to escort Kira-san to her room to wash the flour from her hair so she wouldn't take a detour and do....something....to Seiya...." 

"You know, Kira just-" 

"Seiya! Shut up already!" 

"....fine." 

With the leader of the Starlights sulking, arms crossed and leaning against the wall, Josei shook her head and began setting out the dishes they had brought for Hikaru. "Anyway, Amai and I showed up just in time to see Usagi dump a bowl of cake batter over Seiya-san." She grinned, "it was kind of funny, actually." 

"Well," Hikaru continued to pout. "I wouldn't know, would I?" 

"Hikaru, come on." 

"Yeah!" Minako wandered over and patted the girl's head as if she were a small child. "I'm sure there'll be other food fights, right?" 

"Not if Kira has her way." 

"Seiya-baka! Stop it!" 

"Well, I'm just saying-" 

"Oi." Usagi dropped into a chair in the corner and rested his head against the back, closing his eyes. This is tiring. Fun, but tiring. 

"Usagi-san?" Josei asked, "are you alright?" 

"I'm fine, arigato." 

"He's fine...." Hikaru stated, "but I'm ticked off!" 

"Kami-sama!" Yaten snapped, eyes flashing, "fine! You wish you were there? You want to know what it was like when a CERTAIN blond senshi mashed EGGS into MY HAIR?!" Glaring at Minako, who cringed, she added; "those took FOREVER to get out, by the way!" Then, stalking to the side of Hikaru's bed, she snatched a bowl of cereal from a shocked Josei and dumped it over the aqua-haired girl's head. "There. Now you're in the same boat we were. Happy?" 

"Y-Yaten...." Seiya was gaping. 

"Hn." The silver-haired senshi flicked her eyes toward Seiya and then looked back at Hikaru, who was sitting perfectly still, cereal coating her head and shoulders and dropping down onto the sheets around her, milk soaking her pyjamas and running from her hair, and with a blank, almost shellshocked look on her face, saying nothing. The look on her face WAS funny....Yaten snickered, the scowl she had been wearing for most of the afternoon finally dissolving. "Oi, Hikaru-" 

Not bothering to remove the bowl from her head, Hikaru gave Yaten a flat look. "I hate you." And after a moment, her brows knit and she stuck her tongue out, reaching up to wipe the soggy cereal and milk from her face (it didn't help much, as more just ran from her hair anyway). "Seriously, minna, YUCK!" 

Josei and Usagi, both of whom had been unconsciously holding their breaths from the moment Yaten began to move, let them out with a whoosh and smiled tentatively. Both had been worried about the scene she may have caused....Minako, however, along with Seiya, had no such reservations and burst into peals of laughter. 

Yaten continued to snicker, but managed; "ne, Hikaru-" and then she did something none of them could have ever anticipated. She apologized. "Gomen ne. I was just a little pissed, still. You'd be surprised how therapeutic that was." 

Dryly. "I can imagine." 

In the moments that followed, while Minako continued to have hysterics (Seiya had managed to calm herself down a bit, though), Hikaru sighed and removed the bowl from her head, dropping it on the sheets beside her (who cared? The bed was a mess, anyway) and climbed to her feet. 

"Where do you think you're going?" 

"To have a shower?" 

Josei raised an eyebrow; "you're supposed to stay in bed." 

"Josei-chan, YOU stay in that bed if you want to." Hikaru headed for the door, "I'M having a shower and finding somewhere CLEAN to have a sit down. Probably the library so I can read or whatever." She grimaced, "you guys are WAY to worried about me." 

"But, your arm-" 

"It's alright!" Waving off their concern with her good hand, Hikaru swung the door open- 

-and almost ran into a very surprised Taiki on the other side. Luckily, they both stopped before they could slam into one another, and Hikaru was spared the pain of jarring her bad arm. Pausing, both of them stared for a moment. Then Ami's head appeared from around Taiki, and he blinked at the mess that had once been Hikaru. 

"Do...." Ami began, "....I even want to know?" 

"No." Hikaru stated, "excuse me, please?" 

"Shouldn't you be in bed?" 

The aqua-haired girl growled under her breath but held her tongue. "I'm okay." 

Taiki's lips compressed, "if you're sure...." 

"HAI!" 

"Alright." Stepping to the side, Taiki and Ami both cleared out of the way. "But Ami and I were supposed to tell you something if you could wait a moment-" when Hikaru stopped, she continued; "Kakyuu-hime has decided to hold a Ball tonight in honor of the Earth Senshi....I thought you'd like to know so that you'll all have enough time to get ready for it, ne?" 

"A Ball?" Josei said, glancing at Hikaru, "but Hikaru's-" 

Hikaru rolled her eyes, "I'm FINE! Seriously, I can handle one Ball." 

"Why would it matter?" Usagi wondered. 

"You didn't know?" Josei asked, then shook her head. "No, of course you wouldn't. Usagi-san, Hikaru, Amai and I play the music at most of Kakyuu-hime's formal functions. Mostly classical stuff, you know, but we play some Earth music as well." She smiled, "it started to get popular after Seiya-tachi came back from your world." 

"Oh." 

"Anyway," the violet-haired girl glanced at Hikaru; "Hikaru usually plays the flute, but she certainly can't do it with her arm like that." 

"So I'll sing, ne?" A shrug, "we'll do mostly the Earthian music for this Ball." Turning again, she have a short wave as she vanished down the hall; "tell Amai that I'll meet you guys in the Ball Room to warm up as soon as I'm done with that shower...." 

They all watched her leave; the Earth Senshi all wondering if musical talent was normal for the senshi of Kinmoku (certainly they knew that Seiya, Taiki and Yaten had it, and now had learned that so did Hikaru, Josei and Amai. The only ones they didn't know about yet were Kira and Aoi), and the Starlights wondering if they should tie Hikaru to her bed so she wouldn't work too hard. She needed to rest, the doctor had said, and she obviously wasn't going to if they let her have her way... 

"Okay! Let's get ready!" 

The sound of hands clapping together determinedly made them all look back at Seiya, who grinned and headed for the door, grabbing hold of Usagi on the way and dragging him with her. Together (with Usagi trying to get his arm back the whole time) they wandered down the hall and around the corner. 

"Oi, oi! Seiya! Let go!" Snatching his arm back, the blond glared at his friend, "you're as bad as Yaten sometimes, you know. Ow." Rubbing his skin through the jacket he was wearing, he sighed, "anyway, if you would be so kind as to help me find my room....again....I can get changed and whatever." 

"Sure. Why'd you think I grabbed you on the way past?" 

"'Cause you're a weirdo?" 

"Thanks for that." 

"Welcome." Usagi glanced at the girl from the corner of his eye; she was walking in the same tall and proud way she always did, a half-smirk on her face, as usual. Acting like nothing was wrong, like nothing had happened. It made him nervous, he decided, and he HAD been wanting to talk to her about it. What better time than now? No time like the present, I guess. 

"Hey, Odango?" 

"What're wrong?" 

"What makes you think something's wrong?" 

"You're thinking." 

A blink. "I can't think anymore?" 

"Well...." Seiya tilted her head to the side and grinned, "I'm just not used to a thoughtful Odango. Hell, you're VERY not yourself right now....it's almost scary. Nope, scratch that. It IS scary. Yup. I'm scared" At the look he gave her, she laughed. "Really. You don't believe me? Look," she forced a shiver, "I've got goose bumps." 

Usagi rolled his eyes. "Jerk." 

"Seriously, what were you thinking about?" 

Considering, he frowned. "Look, Seiya, can I ask you....it's about earlier, you know-" 

"You're forgiven." 

"N-nani? For WHAT?" 

"For dumping that cake on my head." 

"Baka!" Usagi reached out and gave her a smack. "I wasn't talking about that!" 

Seiya sighed, "I know." She stopped walking. "You're talking about that kiss, right? I wanted to apologize for that, anyway; I shouldn't have done it. So....there. Gomen nasai. I don't know what I was thinking." 

Feeling oddly hurt by her words, Usagi shook her head. "But I want to know WHY-" 

Seiya hesitated, then; "you know I've always liked you, right?" Somehow, she just couldn't bring herself to say 'love', even though it was true, and it frustrated her to no end as she continued; "but you've got Mamoru-san and that little pink-haired Chibi-Odango, to look forward to, so I know there's no way-" breaking off, she shrugged, trying to make the gesture look nonchalant and not-quite managing it. "That kiss....it was....let's call it a last-ditch effort." 

Usagi watched her for a moment. "Seiya...." 

Another shrug and she kept walking. "You can't blame a girl for trying, ne?" He followed just behind her, silent until they reached the hallway that his room was in. Seiya paused at the end of the corridor, "so here we are, sir, enjoy your stay!" Giving a mock half-bow, she winked; "gomen again, Odango....but I still get to dance with you tonight, right?" 

"Hai," he smiled, "sure. Ja." 

Once Seiya was gone, Usagi stepped into his (pink!) room with a tired sigh, and was prepared to flop on the bed with he noticed the suit that had been laid across the foot. Or, not a suit but a tuxedo, he supposed as he picked it up. White with silver trim. He was surprised by how nice it looked, even just lying where it had been. 

Kakyuu must have ordered it. I wonder if the others got them, too? 

Deciding it didn't matter so long as HE was dressed well, he set about getting changed and ready for the function that he realized, as he was brushing his hair out (a task that was no easier or less time consuming as when he had been a girl) he didn't know when it began. Groaning inwardly, he either needed to find someone, or wait until someone came to find him. And he couldn't decide which to do; he was afraid that if he went out to find someone else, he would get hopelessly lost and miss the Ball, or that if he waited for someone to find him, he'd fall asleep and miss the Ball anyway.... 

Luckily, his problem was solved about an hour later (after he had finished bathing, getting changed and fixing his hair into the ponytail he had ALMOST gotten used to, now....) when a knock sounded at his door and Minako burst in without waiting for an answer. 

"Usagi!" The blond gasped, "I need your help!" 

Suddenly nervous, Usagi was on his feet and tense instantly. "What is it?" 

Minako gave her a severe look and then gestured to the beige-ish-orange (really, WHERE was Kakyuu getting the ideas for the tuxes? Not that they were bad or anything. On the contrary, the one Minako was wearing went well with his hair and matched his eyes nicely) tuxedo he was wearing. "Does this make me look fat?" 

"....." Usagi stared, then; "Minako!" 

"Nani?" 

"You nearly gave me a heart attack!" 

Pausing, Minako frowned, then gave him a sheepish look; "ah....gomen." 

Usagi groaned. "Let's go....say, where's Yaten?" 

Cringing slightly and casting a wary glance over his shoulder, Minako whispered, "she ambushed me just outside of my room, but I convinced her to wait in the hall while I talked to you." 

"You sound like you don't want to see her." 

"I don't!" His voice raised slightly, and he winced before lowering it again. "I mean, I DO, it's just that I like having use of both my arms for a while, and as soon as I head back out there she's going to hook onto me again...." 

Usagi laughed, shoving his friend toward the door. "Let's go," he repeated, "we've got a Ball to attend." 

"....hai...." 

A few minutes later, when the three- Usagi, Minako and Yaten- entered the ballroom, the two Earth Senshi were surprised by the grandeur of the event. They shouldn't have been, really, but there seemed to be a big difference between HEARING about the Royal Balls and actually ATTENDING one. 

Usagi looked around with wide eyes for a long moment before his eyes landed on Seiya and he started toward her; Minako's attention, on the other hand, was torn between the wonders of the Ball and Yaten, who was latched onto his arm yet again, and dressed in a stunning silver gown to match her hair. To onlookers, Minako looked torn between being pleased with himself and clobbering Yaten.... 

"You look terribly dashing." Seiya announced, grinning, when Usagi appeared beside her. 

"Dashing? WHERE did you get that from?" 

A frown; "TV, probably....you know how it is on Earth...." 

"Hai. You look nice, too." 

Nice was an understatement. Seiya looked absolutely amazing in the red dress she had chosen to wear; it flowed out and around her feet and swayed lightly when she moved, and the straps that held it up were almost paper-thin. 

"Odango, you're drooling." 

"Shut up." 

Seiya smiled brightly and held out her hand, "shall w-" suddenly her eyes caught on something over Usagi's shoulder and she stopped. "Oh no...." her eyes widened and she took on a look of fear, making the blond senshi in front of her suspect something terrible for the second time that day. 

"Seiya, nani-?" 

"Well," Aoi's voice interrupted, "you two are looking wonderful tonight!" 

"Huh?" Spinning, Usagi looked at the two Outer Starlights. NANI? 

His jaw fell open. 

Aoi, who was wearing an ivory colored gown for the occasion, smiled- 

-and next to her, Kira- a very MALE Kira- winked, before turning an almost-smirk on Seiya. 

Kira's a guy....Kira's a GUY? What the hell! Turning toward Seiya, Usagi narrowed his eyes. They can change....which means WE can change....I. Am. Going. To. Kill. Them! Pursing his lips and giving Seiya a flat look, he opened his mouth to say something.... 

....but before he could, Seiya's eyes met with Yaten's across the dance floor- Yaten was looking pretty nervous from the ticked-off eyeing she was getting from Minako, and Rei who was nearby- and they both broke into a desperate sprint, dashing for the exit. 

The first thing Princess Kakyuu saw upon entering the Ballroom was two of her Starlights race out, followed by three very irate Earth Senshi. She spotted Kira and sighed as she sat down, realizing what had happened. 

"Are you alright, Princess?" Artemis asked from beside her. 

"Hai...." Kakyuu nodded, "this sort of thing happens all the time...." 

Luna sweatdropped. "Oi...."   
  


______   
  


Me: K, BenRG suggested having Mamoru show up on Kinmoku (with a twist, of course!), which is a wonderful idea (I TRIED to fit it in, really I did) but I've got the story pretty much figured out and I can't find a way to add that. Thanks for the suggestion, though! Until next time! Ja. 


	10. Never Look A Gift Horse Up The Nose

Disclaimer: Yup. Don't own Sailor Moon. 

I also don't own Kira (aka Star Striker) or Aoi (aka Star Keeper). They belong to Cassandra Sistena, who kindly allowed me to borrow *coughkidnapcough* them for this fic, and one other! *huggles* I love Striker-san and Keeper-san! 

I DO, however, own Hikaru (aka Star Hunter), Josei (aka Star Dancer) & Amai (aka Star Dreamer). I created them for this fic as extra characters, and would appreciate it if you asked before using them for anything. (Ha! Like anyone would want to? :p) 

Eep. =^.^= Um, gomen? It's been a long time since my last update of Walk A Mile. ;_; Like, six months... Sorry! I've been really busy with VA-ing, and finishing up Umbroso Estrella (it's done, it's done! Look for the sequel in the future!) 

New chapter!   
  


~Walk A Mile~

~Never Look A Gift Horse Up The Nose~

  
  


"Um...." 

Taiki glanced at Ami and shrugged, "gomen ne." 

A sigh. " I don't blame you. I can guess it was Seiya and Yaten's idea." 

"Hai." 

"Well that was entertaining." Kira chuckled, wandering up to stand next to them with Aoi in tow. From down the corridor, they could hear shrieking and the slam of a door, followed by pounding. "More entertaining than I expected, actually." 

"Kira," Aoi chided, "that wasn't nice." 

"But it was FUN, ne?" 

Taiki gave a tolerant shake of her head, and Ami smiled nervously. Aoi stifled a giggle and turned a stern look on her friend and partner. "You know, we should make you go and rescue them." 

Kira looked horrified, "I think not!" 

"Then Kira-san would be in danger, too!" Hikaru's laughing voice called as she bounced up, arm in a sling and her two fellow-Starlights in-training right behind her. "I say you just let them be." She giggled again, grinning; "Usagi-san and Minako-san won't actually HURT them, will they?" 

"No...." Ami said slowly, rubbing his temple, "but Rei is another story." 

"Ami!" Makoto called from across the room. The brunet had been conversing in hushed tones with Princess Kakyuu, Luna and Artemis, but hurried over. Though seeming worried, he, too, was attempting not to laugh. "We should go help them out." 

The blue-haired senshi nodded, "let's go." 

There was no doubt, as Ami and Makoto headed out into the Palace, of where they were; the two simply followed the shouting and cursing that was still coming from Rei and Minako, and the frightened shrieking from Seiya. The two now-men found their friends- all five of them, though Seiya and Yaten had locked themselves into one of the many bathrooms of the Palace- only a few halls away. 

"Oh my." Ami sighed. 

Makoto could only nod silently. 

"SEIYA! YATEN! OPEN THIS DOOR!" 

"No!" 

"NOW, DAMN IT!" 

"No!" 

Rei growled angrily, then grabbed onto the doorknob of the bathroom and yanked on it, bracing his foot against the doorframe. He was shifting between incoherent shouting and frightening silence, and beside him, Minako wasn't doing much better. Usagi was irate as well, but had chosen to stand back to avoid being hurt in Rei and Minako's tirade. 

After a moment, Rei let go of the doorknob and, suspiciously sweetly, called; "we just want to talk to you, okay?" 

Silence, then; "no way! You'll kill us!" 

Growling, Rei rattled the handle again. "ARGH!" 

"Rei-chan," Usagi said, "this isn't working." 

"I KNOW!" Rei snapped, "FINE!" Letting go of the door again, he dropped down and sat against the wall, leaning against the door. "Stay in there! I'm sitting here until you open the damned door!" 

"Are you kidding?" Yaten shouted back, "I'm NOT living in here!" 

"Well then," Minako told her, "you'll have to come out, then." 

"You'll hurt us!" 

"Only a little." Rei said sharply, "really!" 

"Bastard!" Yaten shrieked, "I'll Star Sensitive Inferno your ass!" 

"THROUGH THE DOOR?!" 

"Fine! Healer Star Power! Make U-" 

"Guys!" Seiya pleaded, interrupting Yaten before she could complete her transformation command, "please! Just let us come out, okay? Come on! I'm in a five-by-five room with Yaten, and she's on the warpath! It was just a joke! This is cruel and unusual punishment! You can't do this!" 

"CRUEL AND UNUSUAL-?!" Yaten's voice raised again, "I'll show you 'CRUEL AND UNUSUAL'!" 

Despite the scuffling and choking sounds that followed, Rei showed no signs of moving, and Minako seemed about ready to take up residence in the hallway as well. Usagi had propped himself against the opposite wall, not really participating, but not stopping them either. 

Chuckling despite himself, Makoto cleared his throat. "Excuse me," he called, "may we cut in?" 

"Mako-chan!" 

"Come to join the fun?" 

"Actually," Ami sighed, "we came to stop you from flaying them. It was just a joke, after all...." 

"Just a joke?!" Rei demanded, "they made us spend a whole-" 

"-day as men." Makoto finished for her. "Was it really so bad? I mean, come on, it really IS kind of funny if you think about it. Probably the worst part was when Haruka-san and the others were giggling at our expense, and THAT was worth it just to hear Haruka laugh that hard." 

Rei glared silently. 

"You know," Minako said thoughtfully, "....Makoto's right...." 

"Yeah!" Seiya's voice called through the door. 

"Shut up!" Rei slammed his fist into the wood, "or I WILL stay out here!" 

A yelp. "Gomen nasai!" 

Usagi giggled, very unbecoming for a man. "I can see how it's funny." 

"Besides," Ami reminded them, "now we know it IS possible to change back to normal. No one was hurt by this at all, and I can guarantee that Kakyuu-hime was in on it, too. How could she not be? She wouldn't have done anything to upset us, so it MUST have just been in good fun." 

Grudgingly. "I suppose." 

"Hai," Minako stood up, brushing his tuxedo off, and threw his ponytail over his shoulder, "I guess I'm not too angry anymore. It WAS kind of a good joke....I mean, no harm no fowl, right?" 

"That's FOUL, Minako...." 

"Whatever." 

"Anyway!" The senshi of love flashed a peace sign, "is it too late to go back and party?" 

"I WON'T go like this!" Rei snapped. 

"Ne...." Seiya called hesitantly, "we can....get you dresses....and stuff...." 

"Actually," Kakyuu's melodic voice laughed as she approached from the direction of the Ball Room with Kira and Aoi, Luna and Artemis behind her, "I've decided to postpone the ball for a day or so. Hikaru-chan needs to rest some more, and I assume the Earthian Senshi whom are our distinguished guests would like some time to get re-accustomed with their female forms and choose new outfits, hai?" 

"I think so." Ami agreed. 

"Well then," Kakyuu smiled and glanced toward Rei, "will you let Seiya and Yaten out, now?" 

"....fine." Rei grudgingly got up and out of the way. 

After a long moment, the door creaked open and Seiya's head peaked around the corner. When she saw she was indeed safe, she made a dive for the hall, and Yaten stormed out behind her, a dangerous glint in her eyes. 

Kakyuu nodded, then looked back over her shoulder at Kira, "I believe Kira would like to say something?" 

"What?!" 

Aoi nudged him. 

"Shimatta." Glaring, Kira rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Look, I'm sorry for messing up your joke....but I planned on going to the Ball like this, and I wasn't going to change my plans just because of your little conspiracy!" 

"Nice." Artemis chuckled. 

Luna shook her head. "Was that an apology?" 

"We're all good now?" Makoto looked around, noting that Rei still seemed less than happy. "Because- no offense- but I think I'd like to figure out how to change back and be myself again. HOW did you three do this for so long on Earth?" 

Yaten snorted. "Are you kidding? Seiya LIKED it!" 

A glare. "Harpy." 

"Bitch." 

Seiya grinned, "I know you don't actually think that." 

"Try me." 

"Oi...." Usagi shook his head and started down the hall, "I'm going to get changed." 

"In more ways than one, ne?" Minako joked, earning a glare from both the blond and Rei. "Okay, okay...." 

The Moon Child shook his head and headed down the hall to the tune of Rei snapping at Minako, Ami attempting to calm her hot-tempered friend, Seiya picking a fight with Kira over the whole ugly incident, and Kakyuu-hime's nervous laughter. 

Usagi sighed. 

Back to life as normal. 

Oi, oi.   
  


********** 

Me: Eep. A VERY short chapter. ^^;; Gomen gomen. *bows* It just kind of....ended. *sighsigh* The next chapter will be longer, AND better, I swear! *mutters about writers block* Hopefully I'm over it now.... 


	11. Being Ever So Female

**Disclaimer:** Sailormoon and any characters/concepts/whatever belong to the absolutely wonderful Takeuchi Naoko-dono! ^^ Kira/Star Striker and Aoi/Star Keeper belong to Cassandra Sisenta (I just kidnapped them for a while, but I'll return them in the original packaging!) and Hikaru/Star Hunter, Josei/Star Dancer and Amai/Star Dreamer are products of my own imagination. ^_~

Hikaru: Be afraid. Be very afraid.

Sena: Hush.

NEW CHAPTER!! HARK, FOR EVERYONE SHALL DIE OF SHOCK!! =O ...what?

So, the first set of lyrics are to the song _Namida__ wa Shittiru_, which is one of the Ending Themes from the anime series _Rurouni Kenshin_, and was originally sung by Suyukaze Mayo. If you have never seen RK, I definitely recommend that you do so—it's an altogether amazing series. The second set of lyrics (which are unfinished in this) are from _Nagareboshi He_, which is, obviously, from _Sailormoon Stars_ and was originally sung by Niiyama Shiho (as Seiya), Tsunoda Narumu (as Taiki) and Sakamoto Chika (as Yaten).

Oh, and I actually got around to writing the sequel to _Umbroso Estrella!_ O.O;; Remember? The one I promised to write over a year ago? Well, I finally got it started! *one person cheers* So! _Dance In The Shadows!_ YAY!

And I'm also a couple of pages into a little side-story to _Walk A Mile_, which is called _Someone Else's Shoes_ and is about the Outer Senshi/Quartet/Chibiusa while the Inners are on Kinmoku. That should be out... soon. I hope. *crossed fingers here*

**Walk A Mile**

**11: Being Ever So Female...**

Becoming a woman again was a little more complicated than just _willing_ it to happen, but with some pointers from Taiki and Aoi (who really felt badly about the entire sordid affair), all of the Earth Senshi had, yes, finally, thankfully, managed it.

"Ahh!" Stretching her arms above her head, Usagi uttered a contented sigh and flopped backward onto her bed, reveling in her newly rediscovered feminism. Suddenly, the bright pink of her appointed quarters didn't seem so inappropriate. _This is so much better than before!_

It was funny, but she hadn't actually _hated_ her time as a guy—not that she was about to tell anyone that. It had been eye-opening, to say the least, and fun in a _different_ sort of way. She wondered, though, how the Starlights had learned about the seemingly universal ability of Senshi to change genders.

She would have to remember to ask Seiya about that...

_I wonder what Kakyuu-hime will do with the tuxedos she had made for us?_

Her eyes drifted to aforementioned white-and-silver suit, which she had draped over the back of the only chair in the room. It was a pity, really—it was such a _nice_ outfit—but it _certainly_ didn't fit her now that she was a female once more. Maybe one of the Lights would have some use for it...

"Usagi-chan!" The door banged open to admit a bouncing—female—Minako, who twirled around several times in the doorway, hair flying around her. "I'm back to normal! Isn't it great?"

"Uh... hai?"

The other blonde didn't seem to notice her lack of enthusiasm as she practically skipped over to seat herself on the edge of the bed next to Usagi, who shuffled herself over a bit to make room. She hadn't seen Minako so happy since... well, since Luna had told them of Kakyuu's generous offer to host them for a few days.

"I missed my bow," Minako sighed, and absently reached up to touch the familiar strip of red ribbon, "ponytails are _not_ the way to go for this Senshi..." pausing, she frowned in Usagi's direction; "daijobo ka, Usagi-chan?"

"I'm fine." Shaking her head, Usagi pushed herself up onto her elbows and wrinkled her nose. "Just tired, I guess."

"Sou..." Minako agreed vaguely, then; "no sleeping just yet, ne?" And when her friend gave her a puzzled look, she winked and added; "the Ball's still going on, Usagi! Just because we made a bit of a scene doesn't mean the whole thing was called off! We're all supposed to head back down for a while—you know, just put in an appearance."

'A bit of a scene' was more than a little understatement. The two of them, along with Rei, having _literally_ chased Seiya and Yaten out of the ballroom, had probably created the biggest scandal in the last ten years.

_Then again, this is _Seiya's _home..._

Who knew what the Nagareboshi Senshi's leader did in her spare time?

"I guess we can wear dresses, now." Usagi commented, half-to-herself, and Minako nodded emphatically. "And I _did_ want to see Hikaru and the others perform."

"Exactly!" Never one to pass up an opportunity to dress up and dance, the Senshi of Venus was already more than willing to get back into the Party Mood. "It'd be rude of us not to go, and I'm sure Hikaru-tachi want us to see them sing, ne?"

"Hai..."

"Great!" All perkiness and enthusiasm once more, Minako bounced back up from the bed and gestured toward the closet with one hand, "so get dressed already! _I'm_ going to pick out a dress, and I'll meet you down there, alright?"

Usagi watched her friend vanish out into the hallway, shutting the door behind herself, and then turned her attention to the awaiting closet. Honestly, she didn't know what to expect inside—but she got up and walked over, then swung the doors open, anyway.

Most of her own clothing—meaning, that which she had brought with her from Earth—was still packed in her bag, so anything that was in the closet would have been put there by... who? Possibly Kakyuu, though she wouldn't have done it herself, and instead would have had someone else do it for her.

There were three dresses inside, and, on the floor beneath them, shoes to match: one dress was a plain, pure white, with long flared sleeves and a flowing skirt. The second was a beautiful baby blue color, with a shorter, knee-length skirt and no sleeves at all.

And the third—

The third dress was midnight black, with a trailing skirt and loose, scoop-neck. The straps that were to hold it up were thin, and subtle sequins adorned the edges of the flowing hemline.

_Seiya chose this one._

There was no doubt in her mind—none at all—as she looked at the final dress. It was gorgeous, really, but had Seiya's taste in gowns written all over it... and, not unexpectedly, it was the nicest of the three. Usagi fingered one of the straps absently as she removed it from the closet, followed shortly by a pair of elegant black sandals...

It fit perfectly, which was a bit of a surprise, considering she hadn't chosen it herself. Not that she was going to complain, of course. Regarding herself in a mirror that backed the dresser in the room, she brushed invisible lint from the dress and then smoothed back a stray lock of hair.

It was almost strange to see herself, odango hairstyle and everything, staring back at her from the mirror's reflective surface. _I wasn't a man for that long, but I sure got used to being one._

She couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not...

Shaking her head, she turned away from her reflection and stepped out into the hallway—just in time to run headlong into Makoto, who had emerged from _her_ room only seconds before—

"Oof!"

Luckily, Makoto was a lot more graceful than Usagi was, and she not only stopped herself from careening into the floor, but caught the blonde before she could do it, too. She was giggling to herself as she steadied Usagi on her feet, and then raised an eyebrow speculatively.

"It's a very nice dress, Usagi-chan," she said pleasantly, "but are you sure you can walk on those heels?"

"Nya!" Sticking her tongue out, Usagi crossed her arms and pouted. "I'm not _that_ clumsy, Mako-chan!"

"Says she who just about knocked us both on our backsides." Makoto replied, but she followed the joke with a friendly pat on Usagi's back, and then gave her a gentle shove; "get moving, or they'll start wondering what happened to us."

Usagi nodded in agreement, and the two of them started down toward the ballroom: Makoto herself was wearing a dress that was a deep, chocolate brown, with a leaf-vine pattern trailed across it, from her right shoulder down to her left hip.

"I like you dress, too." She said finally as they approached the huge, ornate doors that lead to the Ball Princess Kakyuu had insisted on throwing in their honor. Beyond the doors, music was flowing easily, lead by Hikaru's voice as she sang...

_"Kimi ga namida ni yureru toki,  
Dousureba iin darou._

_Sora wo miagetemo  
Kokoro ga itai..."_

"Thanks." Makoto grinned, pushing the doors open, and the two of them slipped into the room as inconspicuously as possibly—

"_Usagi-chan!__ Mako-chan!"_

No sooner had they crossed the threshold than Minako was on them, showing off her own dress and drooling over theirs. She had, upon changing back to her normal self, completely reverted to her old habits: Yaten, still wearing her silver dress and looking hugely nonplussed, was trying vainly to retrieve her arm from Minako's steel-trap of a grasp.

Makoto quickly slipped away, having spotted Kira and Aoi, who were standing to one side of the dance floor, presumable to chat with the blonde Light about cooking—or baking. Basically, anything to escape from Minako's giggling and Yaten's complaining.

"You look so pretty!" Having waved vaguely to acknowledge Makoto's leaving, Minako continued gushing in Usagi's general direction, "I've never seen you in a black dress before, but it looks _so_ good on you, Usagi-chan!"

"Arigato," Usagi nodded toward the other girl's own dress: one of a pale, elegant gold, which—coincidentally?—set off Yaten's silver gown quite well. "Yours is nice, too."

"Arigato, Usagi-chan!"

"Anou..." trying not to sound suspicious, but not really in the mood to stay and let Minako continue to ramble at her, she cleared her throat as her eyes lit on the table—which had been set up in an out-of-the-way corner—that was heaped with drinks. "I'm going to get a drink... talk to you later?"

Minako blinked, then shrugged. "Hai, I guess."

As she ducked past her friend, Yaten began to fuss again...

_"Kizu tsukanakute ii koto ni  
Dare mo ga fureteshimau.  
Mizu no tsumetasa ni  
Odoroku toki no you ni."_

Glancing over her shoulder, Usagi giggled as Minako began to drag Yaten off toward the dance floor, regardless of the fact that both of them were girls. _Not that it matters,_ her mind told her firmly, as thoughts of Haruka and Michiru flashed through her head, _it doesn't at all..._

Still, Yaten didn't look particularly happy...

_When does she ever?_

_"Tonari ni iru dake de  
Nanimo dekinai kedo  
Arittake no egao kimi, dake ni  
Kakaete okuruyo donna toki mo..."_

The drink table was alluring, but she didn't take one right away: instead, each and every glass on the table found itself under careful scrutiny. She'd been exposed to alcohol all of twice in her entire life, and both times had ended with her making a complete fool of herself (and everyone associated with her).

She wasn't going to make that mistake this time, too...

_This one... looks safe._

A tiny sip from the crystal glass she had selected proved to be some kind of juice—or so she hoped—and she carefully moved out of the way, standing near one wall and watch the couples (oh, and Minako and Yaten) dance and sip at her drink while trying to appear far more sophisticated than she felt.

_"Shinjite ii yo yume wa yattekuru  
Kimi no tame dake ni.  
Naitemo ii yo donna kanashimimo  
Tsubasa ni kawaru no sa sono mune de."_

Hikaru was obviously having a lot of fun, and, as far she Usagi could tell, so were Josei and Amai—though Amai was trying very hard to keep her face turned down and her attention firmly on the piano keys in front of her. She reminded the blonde of Ami in that way...

It wasn't all that surprising that the three New Lights could sing. And play their own music; they _were_ being taught by Seiya and the others, after all. Besides which, it seemed that music flowed through every Starlight's veins.

_I wonder if Kira-san and Aoi-san can play as well? Probably..._

Speaking of Kira and Aoi, they were off dancing as well, and seeming more than familiar with it. For a moment, Usagi entertained the idea that _dancing_ was the reason Kira had shown up at the Ball in a tuxedo instead of a dress...

_Or she—he—whatever—just did it to get Seiya in trouble._

That was a good bet, too...

_"Dareka wo mamoru koto nante  
Kantan ni dekinai ne?__  
Kimi ni furuame mo  
Tomerarenai yo."_

"I like your dress."

The voice was familiar and, at the same time, completely out of place. Blinking, Usagi turned to look over her shoulder at Seiya—at Seiya, who was, once again, wearing a familiar red suit and looking very much as he had during his stint as a superstar on Earth.

"Seiya?" She couldn't keep the surprise out of her voice as he moved to stand beside her. "N-nani..."

"You can pick your jaw up off of the floor any time now, Odango." He grinned.

"D-demo—"

He shook his head for a moment, chuckling, and then said; "we still have to have that dance, ne? I figured this would make it easier—" on those words, he nodded toward Minako and Yaten, who weren't dancing so much as arguing to music. With a quirk of his lips, he offered her his arm; "shall we?"

  
_"Dakedo akirametaku wa nai—  
Chippokena yuuki demo.  
Itsuka honto no  
Tsuyosa ni nareru naraba..."_

Before she could object, Seiya had taken her glass away and set it somewhere for safe keeping—and then escorted her to the dance floor, where he immediately swept her off to meld in with all the other dancing people.

She had to be very careful not to trip and fall flat on her face, and it must have been obvious by how hard she was concentrating, for Seiya couldn't help but chuckle at the focused way she was watching her own feet...

"Don't worry so much, Odango, you're doing fine."

"Ne?" She looked up. "You'll regret saying that when I trip and take you down with me..."

_"Chiisana chou de sae  
Umi wo koeteyukeru.  
"__Itsuka__, kitto," sonna kotoba shika,  
Ienai jibun ga kuyashii kedo."_

She was doing fairly well—and actually enjoying herself, rather that fretting over her own clumsiness—and then they happened to pass Kira and Aoi. The blonde nodded cheerfully in their direction, and the redhead winked toward Usagi, who couldn't help the flush of red that colored her cheeks. 

"Concentrate on your own _date_, Kira." Seiya muttered, just loud enough for them to hear on their way past.

Both of the other Lights blinked—and then turned beet red when his words actually struck home.

Usagi was surprised. "You mean they're not... anou..."

"A couple?" Seiya finished for her, as Kira and Aoi vanished back into the crowd, "they say not, but..."

"Ah..."

_"Shinjite ii yo niji wa yattekuru  
Kimi no tsuma saki e.  
Shinjite ii yo kimi no toki ga kuru,  
Mousugu atarashii kaze no naka..."_

To Usagi's surprise, Taiki seemed to have asked Ami to dance.

Seiya pointed it out, and she wouldn't have believed it herself had she not seen them with her own eyes, and as it was she had to resist the urge to rub at her eyes. Besides that surprising fact, Taiki was also—like Seiya and Kira—no longer in _female_ form. _Well, I'll be..._

"She changed for Ami," Seiya confided, as if reading her thoughts. "Taiki's kind of stuck on her..."

"Hontou ni?" She'd had her suspicions, but...

"Hai," he agreed brightly, "not that he'll admit it."

"It's the same with Ami-chan." Usagi nodded, "she's always been like that."

"Always?"

"Yup."

"Hmm."

  
_"Sou sa, kanarazu yume wa yattekuru—  
Sono mune wo hiroge.  
Kitto namida wa sore wo shitte iru  
Oshie ni kitan dayo ashita kara."_

Minako and Yaten passed them, Minako looking determined and Yaten looking about as resigned as she could, and Usagi had to shake her head. _When will she learn?_

"You know, she's the only one that Yaten'll tolerate like that."

"Sou da ne..."

They both lapsed into silence once more, instead concentrating on the music and dancing, and Usagi was once again struck by how talented the denizens of Kinmoku seemed to be: the song that Hikaru, Josei and Amai were playing was even an Earth song—she recognized it as one.

"Do they write their own music, too?" She wondered aloud.

"Sometimes," Seiya shrugged, "Amai does a lot of writing, but she's not really confident enough to let others hear it. Normally it's Hikaru that comes out with original pieces, though I can't say if she's the one who wrote them or not..."

"Are all you Starlights so into music?"

He raised one eyebrow. "It comes with the territory, Odango."

  
_"Shinjite iiyo yume wa yatte kuru  
Kimi no tame dake ni.  
Naite mo iiyo donna kanashimimo  
Tsubasa ni kawaru no sa sono mune de..."_

The music wound to an end, but Seiya seemed reluctant to release her. Stepping away, he gave a short bow, "doumo arigato, Odango. You're a better dancer than I thought you'd be."

"Uh, arigato... I guess."

"I also wanted to say," he continued; "gomen ne."

Surprise. "What for?"

"Earlier." He seemed chagrined, "I should have just told you how to change back when you first got here."

Her hands went to her hips almost by habit, but she found she wasn't really angry. "Well... it didn't really hurt me, so..."

"Great."

He was visibly relieved, and Usagi was once again reminded just how much her opinion meant to him. A momentary flash of discomfort washed over her, and she moved her hands from her hips to cross her arms instead—a purely unconscious defensive motion.

"Minna-san!"

Hikaru's voice, this time _sans_-lyrics, called out over the murmuring of the crowd, and Usagi was more than glad to turn her eyes to the outgoing Light-In-Training. One arm still in a sling, the aqua-haired girl waved the other one to catch everyone's attention.

"We're going to do another song, now." She told them all; "one that you should all know pretty well... but with a few little changes, considering our particular instruments... ne, Josei-chan?"

Josei rolled her eyes and waved her violin bow in Hikaru's general direction. "Hai, Hai..."

There was a moment of shuffling about on stage, then, as Amai thumbed through her music to find the correct sheets, and both she and Josei moved microphones to within their reach, and then—

_"Search for your love....._

_Search for you love..."_

"WAI!" 

Minako's voice called out over the beginning of the song. Usagi couldn't actually _see_ her, but she was certainly loud enough when she wanted to be. Giggling a bit, she turned back to Seiya, who was watching his protégés with a half-grin on his face.

"Ne, Seiya?"

"Hmm? Nani yo, Odango?"

"I don't suppose you'd like to dance again, would you?"

He blinked slowly, then tipped his head to the side and held out one hand; "of course, m'lady."

She couldn't help it—her face flushed red. "S-Seiya..." 

_"Kimi ha itsumo kagayai te ta,   
egao hitotsu chiisana hoshi.   
taisetsu ni shite ta yo...  
ano hiboku ha mamore nakute,   
kuyashi namida kora e ta dake,   
ita mi ga noku ru yo..."_

"You do look lovely, Odango." He whispered, and she giggled nervously.

"That's only because you have such good taste in dresses, Seiya."

"Ah! Who sold me out this time? Yaten? Kira?"

"No one. I could just tell."

"Sou..." he shook his head, and then leaned down to brush his lips lightly across her cheek, making her blush even brighter. "Nonetheless, it really looks good on you."

"Seiya..."

"I know, I know." Moving back, he smiled, this time a bit sadly. "Mamoru-san and all..."

"Gomen ne..."

"Iie," he shook his head. "I know better..." brightening, he added; "shall we dance, then?"

She wanted to say something else—but decided against it. Instead, she just took his hand and allowed him to lead her off into another dance. _Hai... we can dance, at least... we can dance..._

**~*~*~*~*~**

Mou... I like this chapter, but... it has quite a different feel to it than the others... or is it just me? Poor... everyone. The only characters who really got to be in this chapter were Usagi and Seiya. Not that I mind, of course.... I'm just rambling.

Hopefully the next chapter won't take so friggin' long... -_-;; 


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